


Confessions

by Maisey2k10



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Family, Humour, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2019-12-18
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:49:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 38,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21839995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maisey2k10/pseuds/Maisey2k10
Summary: Making a confession isn't always easy, but in order for Fred Weasley to win the witch of his dreams, he had to summon his Gryffindor courage, scare off her other suitors and bare his heart and soul to the population of Hogwarts, hoping it was enough. Rated for language, violence and sexual content! HGxFW pairing!
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Fred Weasley
Comments: 15
Kudos: 291





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own canon events and characters, they belong to J.K Rowling. I am not making a profit from writing and posting this fanfic. Rated for language, violence and sexual content. 
> 
> Page Count: 42

"What are you staring at?" George Weasley asked his twin brother but he received no reply. "Oi, Freddie," George called, reaching over for a bread roll and chucking it at Fred, finally pulling his attention.

"What was that for?" Fred asked with a scowl. He picked up the bread roll and threw it at George and he caught it easily.

"Ignoring me," he shrugged his shoulders. "What were you staring at so intensely you got distracted in the middle of our conversation?"

"Nothing," Fred said quickly, too quickly to be believable.

"It's confession time," George said in a sing-song voice. He raised an eyebrow and seeing his brother's eyes stray back down the table, George leaned back on the bench and allowed his eyes to wander, trying to see what it was that had caught his brother's attention.

As soon as his eyes landed on the resident Gryffindor bookworm he felt amusement bubble within him and he chuckled, shaking his head lightly.

"Still, Freddie? I thought you would've gotten over this by now."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Fred muttered, avoiding George's gaze.

George snorted. "Nice try, but I know you and I know that face; it's mine." Fred rolled his eyes. "I knew you had a crush on the fiery little witch, but I thought you'd gotten over it since you haven't done anything about it, it's been over a year."

Fred glared at George before throwing a quick Silencing Charm around them to keep anyone from hearing their conversation, because that's just what he needed; the gossip mill of Hogwarts spreading the word that he was head over heels for Hermione Granger.

"So, do you still have a thing for her?" George asked. Fred shrugged his shoulders. "What about Katie?"

Fred frowned in confusion. "What about her?"

"Angie told me that Katie told her that you've been spending time _together_." Fred's face pulled into a grimace. "I guess that's not true then."

"Of course it's not true. Why would you even believe that?"

George shrugged his shoulders. "We may share everything, but we've always been respectful when it comes to each other's love lives. Since you never told me, I assumed it either wasn't serious or you didn't want me to know yet."

"We both know I'd never keep something like that from you, and no, I haven't been spending any time with her. She kissed me at the start of the year and I told her I didn't see her that way, only as a friend. Whatever she's told Angie is a lie and you can tell her that, too. I don't want Katie spreading rumours..." Fred's eyes strayed to Hermione before turning back to George. "Angie's the only one she'll listen to; she's the only one that can get her to stop this behaviour."

"Alright," George shrugged. "I'll let her know as soon as I see her, but what are you going to do?"

"What'd you mean?" Fred asked confused.

"About Granger," George clarified. "It's been over a year and seeing as you still have a crush on her, I don't think it's going to go away any time soon. I'm actually surprised you haven't taken a shot at her yet."

"Your point?"

"She's not going to be single forever, Freddie."

"What'd you mean by that?" Fred said, sitting up taller and narrowing his eyes slightly.

"Exactly that, you're not the only one that's got your eyes on her. I've overheard that she's seemed to have caught Cormac McLaggen's attention, as well as Terry Boot's and even Seamus is interacting with her more than usual. The school's starting to notice, Freddie, she grew up a lot over the summer and she's getting prettier by the day."

Fred glowered at the news and folded his arms over his chest. "She's always been beautiful," Fred protested. George's mouth twitched in amusement.

"My point is, you're not the only one that's interested in her and if you don't do something about it, she may never know your feelings for her and you'll never get the chance to see if you could make something work between the two of you. What are you afraid of?"

"Her perception of me," Fred admitted. "She probably sees me as Ron's big brother, maybe even as family given the way mum and dad treat her."

George sighed. "Freddie, you won't know if you don't take a chance, for all you know she might have a little crush on you, too."

"I doubt it; I'm the exact opposite of what she likes. She likes organisation and punctuality; I'm chaotic and late to everything. I'm not academic and I hate reading, it's practically what she lives for."

George rolled his eyes. "You're focusing on the negatives, not the positives."

"Positives?"

"You're creative, you're funny, you might not care for your grades but you're smart, no one can deny that, not even her. And even though you're the less handsome twin, you're still not bad to look at."

"Oi!" Fred scowled.

George smirked. "And you're forgetting the most important thing."

"And that is?"

"You're a Weasley Twin."

A smile pulled at Fred's mouth. "Say I do make a move on her, what if she turns me down?"

"Oh, would you look at that, Seamus is sitting awfully close to Hermione and she's laughing at something he's said."

Fred's head whipped around so fast he made himself dizzy and his eyes quickly narrowed as he took in the sight of Seamus sitting next to Hermione, leaning in close to her and whispering into her ear. She laughed lightly before batting him away with her hand.

"Told you, Freddie, you're not the only one that's got a thing for her. In fact, she's looking rather lovely this afternoon, maybe I should take a shot at her myself."

"Over my dead body," Fred glared at George and then at Seamus, trying to burn a hole in the back of his head.

The younger wizard, feeling eyes on him, turned to look down the table, immediately catching sight of a furiously glaring Fred. His smile dropped from his face briefly, before he shook his head and turned back to Hermione, his smile reappearing.

"What?" George asked innocently. "I figured it would be a lot better for you if I were to be the one to sweep her off her feet, rather than Seamus, or Boot, or even McLaggen. You know, seeing as you're too chicken to do it."

"I'm not chicken," Fred argued.

"Then prove it, are you really going to let someone steal your witch right from under your nose?" George said with a raised eyebrow.

Fred closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm himself. "No, I'm not, I've waited long enough and it's time to do something about it."

"That's my Freddie, you had me worried. And now's your chance."

George gestured down the table as raised voices could be heard, before Hermione stood from the bench, snapped her book shut, slung her school bag over her shoulder and sent a glare to Ron before storming out of the great hall.

"Good luck," George spoke as Fred was quick to follow behind her, throwing his school bag over his shoulder and following her out of the great hall.

He caught up to her quickly and he was very much aware that she was far from calm. He'd spent the last year quietly observing the little witch and he soon learned her mannerisms and behaviours, giving him an indication of what mood she was in that day. If she had toast with jam for breakfast and a glass of orange juice, he knew she'd slept well and would most likely have a good day. If she ate eggs and sausages for breakfast, she'd follow that with a strong cup of tea and it meant she hadn't slept well and she'd most likely have a bad morning, her day picking up after lunch. He knew that if she carried her books in her arms, she was feeling light and open, but if she carried them pressed against her chest, she was sad or angry and closed off.

Knowing her as well as he did, he recognised the larger steps she took, her back being ramrod straight and she held her book to her chest tightly, her hands clenched into tight fists, all signalling her annoyance and upset. Whatever Ron had said to her had obviously upset her, and he wasn't surprised, his idiot brother was always hurting her.

"Hey, Hermione!" Fred called.

Hermione immediately came to stop and she turned to look over her shoulder, the upset look briefly falling from her face as she blinked at him in surprise. He knew why; he'd never called her by her given name before. He'd surprised her which had been his intentions.

"Everything alright?" He asked, his voice softening as he came to a stop beside her.

Given their height difference she was forced to tilt her head back to keep eye contact with him. His mouth twitched; she was so small in stature, but her powerful magic and fierceness more than enough made up for it, making her seem bigger than she actually was. Being so close to her, he hadn't realised just how small she was, he was at least half a foot bigger than her, maybe even more.

She blinked at him slowly. "Sorry?"

"Are you alright?"

She frowned slightly before shaking her head. "I'm fine, thank you, Fred" she replied, turning and continuing down the corridor.

His mouth twitched at the corners; that was one of the reasons he liked her so much, she could tell him and George apart when no one else could, not even his own mother!

"You're lying to me," he replied, falling into step beside her. "What's my idiot brother done now?"

"What'd you mean?"

"I'm not stupid, Hermione..." She blinked again in confusion. "I know what he's like, so, what's he said to you now? And whatever it is, you shouldn't listen to him. You're worth more than his opinion of you."

"I... Thank you," she said, turning her head to look up at him. "I think I needed to hear that."

He gave her a lopsided grin, making her blink once more.

"You're very welcome; it's always a pleasure to help a beautiful witch." His mouth pulled at the corners when her cheeks darkened and her gaze dropped to the floor. "So, where are you headed?"

"The library, I've a free period and need to add the finishing touches to my history of magic assignment, I've been so busy lately I haven't had time to finish it."

"Oh, I've got a free period, too. Would you mind if I joined you?"

She came to a stop, his words surprising her more than he ever had before. "You want to go to the library?"

He gave her that lopsided smile again. "Yes, I need to research a few charms for some products George and I are working on, maybe you could help me find the books I need? I don't doubt you know the place just as well as Pince," he spoke. She narrowed her eyes at him and he held his hands up in surrender. "I mean no offence, I just know you spend a lot of time in the library and thought you could stop me from wasting half an hour trying to find the books I need."

"Alright then," she said, eyeing him cautiously and she continued with her journey towards the third floor.

"That looks heavy, let me get that for you," Fred said, reaching out for her bag, plucking the strap off her shoulder and placing it on his own, being surprised at how heavy it actually was. Merlin! How didn't she walk with a hunched back?

"You don't have to do that, Fred," she spoke, reaching out to take her bag back from him.

"I know, but I don't want you hurting yourself. Merlin, Hermione, what do you have in here, a boulder collection?" She rolled her eyes at him. "How do you manage to carry this around all day without injuring yourself? Surely you must get back pain?"

"Sometimes," she shrugged her shoulders, reaching out for the bag once more but Fred batted her hands away and then took her book from her, too. "Seriously?"

"Yep," he grinned at her. "I can't be having a beautiful witch such as yourself lugging around such heavy items, what kind of wizard would that make me?"

She blushed again and he felt a smile pull at his mouth. Twice in ten minutes, he thought proudly.

Once they reached the library Fred received a surprised but suspicious look from Madame Pince and he gave her a little wave, causing her to narrow her eyes at him. After telling Hermione what books he wanted, she gave him a look of curiosity and caution and he had to stop himself from laughing; obviously, she knew the kind of magic those books contained.

After she retrieved his books for him quicker than he thought possible, she headed to the back of the library and he followed after her, being surprised when she came to a little nook that held a small warn couch and a small round table with lanterns fitted to the stone walls. He hadn't even known it was there and he was sure others didn't know either.

"This is my little hideaway, it was built after the Marauder's Map was created so it won't show up, no one knows about this place, not even Harry and Ron."

He felt himself smiling at the news; he was the first person she'd shown to her little safe haven, to her place away from the school population which meant she must've had at least some trust in him.

He knew she was comfortable in the hideaway as much to his surprise, she sat on the couch, kicked off her shoes and tucked her feet beneath her as she leaned against the armrest and removed her assignment from her bag, using a book as a rest. He chuckled when she flicked her wand and the three books she'd collected from the shelves for herself levitated in front of her, the books opening to the pages of her choice.

"Are you going to stand there all day?" She asked him, her eyes flittering between the books and her assignment.

Putting his bag down on the ground, he sat on the couch beside her -it being so small his leg brushed her feet- and he pulled the table closer to him, making a start on his research.

He didn't know how long it had been but some time later he felt a small hand reach out and touch his shoulder, pulling his attention from the pages in front of him. He turned to look at Hermione, seeing she'd packed away her things and had put her shoes back on.

"Wow, I thought I was bad but you put me to shame," she said amused. "I've been trying to get your attention for the last five minutes, I have to go; my Arithmancy lesson starts in fifteen minutes."

He blinked in surprise at the news; had he really been sat there, with his head in a book for just over an hour and without moving, too? Merlin, he'd never done that before. He found it hard to focus for long periods of time, which is one of the reasons he hated reading so much, but being with Hermione, he'd felt calm and relaxed. So much so that he hadn't even realised so much time had passed and so quickly, too.

"Right, I suppose we better go. I'll walk you."

"You don't have to," she responded.

"I'm heading that way anyway," he lied.

He actually had herbology which would put him on the other side of the castle, but he didn't mind being late to his lesson; Sprout was easy to forgive tardiness, especially if you faked interest in one of her prized plants.

He stood from the couch and took Hermione's bag from her before she had chance to shoulder it, and as they made their way out of the library, Fred returned his books seeing as he'd learned everything he needed to know. They walked the majority of the way in silence, Hermione feeling uncomfortable at the stares they received and Fred ignoring them as he pulled Hermione into conversation.

"You know I have to confess, you're not a bad study partner," Hermione commented as they neared her classroom.

"Yeah? Does that mean you'll let me join you in the future?"

Hermione came to a stop outside her classroom and she tilted her head, looking up at him. "I suppose, you do know where my little hiding place is after all," she replied.

He grinned at her as he handed her bag back to her. "I'll see you later, Hermione," he said, turning and walking down the corridor with a slight skip in his step.

Progress had been made.

~000~000~000~

**Three days later...**

Three days later found Fred and George making their way towards the Room of Requirement for the D.A meeting that would be starting in ten minutes. The three days that had past Fred had been careful with his interactions with Hermione, not wanting to be around her so much that she felt suffocated, but being around her enough that she most certainly noticed his presence. When passing in the corridors and seeing each other in the common room he'd send her a smile or a wink, causing her to blush, or when heading in the same direction, he'd leave an amused George behind and walk Hermione to her classroom, taking her bag from her no matter how much she assured him she could carry it herself.

"You should pair with Granger, today?" George suggested.

Fred looked at his brother in surprise; they _never_ duelled or fought separately. Being twins and understanding each other as well as they did, they were able to feed off each other, they knew the other's thoughts and duelling style which made them unbeatable in a duel when together, but it also meant there was never a winner when duelling against each other.

"Why?"

George shrugged. "It gives you chance to spend more time with her, whatever you've been doing over the last few days seems to be working in your favour, she's practically a bloody tomato when you're around."

Fred felt his mouth pull into a smile, glad that he wasn't the only one to notice it and glad that he hadn't been imagining things.

"She'll kick my arse,"

"Probably," George nodded in agreement

"Thanks for your words of encouragement," Fred said.

George shrugged his shoulders. "There's no denying she's a formidable witch, Freddie. You can hold your own against me, but I think she's one of the few people that would be able to take us both on and win. It's impossible to understand the way her brilliant mind works, which makes it harder to outduel her. Just think though, you're putting your body through injuries to make some progress with the little witch."

"It's worth it," Fred nodded.

"Besides, we need a reason to test the Bruise Removal Paste," George commented.

They both checked that they hadn't been followed before the door appeared in front of them and they stepped inside, seeing that almost everyone had already arrived and were talking in little groups.

Not long later everyone was pairing off as Harry walked around the room helping those that needed it. Given that the D.A hadn't been running long, they were still recapping some of the lower year spells and therefore, those above a certain year had already learned them, including himself, George and Hermione, which meant they spent their time duelling for practice.

"Hey, Hermione," he said, making his way over to her.

She turned around to face him, giving him a small smile in greeting.

"Hi, Fred, what can I help you with?"

"Do you wanna be my partner?" He asked her.

Her reaction was expected, she blinked slowly and her mouth parted slightly, her eyes darting off to a point over his shoulder and seeing George and Lee duelling, the latter of the two looking as equally as surprised as Hermione.

"Um, sure," she said, gesturing for him to follow her over to a more quieter area of the room, giving them plenty of space to both spar and talk without anyone overhearing.

"Take it easy on me, yeah?" She blinked in surprise once more and he chuckled. "Come on, Hermione, we both know you can easily kick the arse of everyone in here, what with that brilliant mind of yours."

On cue, her blush made an appearance and she cleared her throat nervously. "Alright then, rules; you obviously can't use The Unforgivables or anything illegal..."

"And do you know any illegal spells, Hermione?" He raised an eyebrow and her blush darkened. "My, my, Miss. Granger, you're full of surprises," he teased and she scowled at him.

"And you can't cast anything you don't know how to heal or counter," she continued as if she hadn't been interrupted.

He nodded and assumed his position and she did the same. They'd barely bowed to one another when she threw a Stinging Hex at him and he cast a shield in response, pouring his magic into it to strengthen it as she shot off six simultaneous spells so fast he could barely keep up. On the fourth spell his shield shattered and he only just managed to duck to the final two.

"You agreed to go easy on me," he said, standing back to his feet and looking both amused and surprised.

"I am going easy on you," she replied. He wasn't sure if that worried him or not. He knew she was good in a fight, he just didn't know she was _that_ good.

Hoping to take her off guard he threw a _Stupefy_ her way and followed that with an _Impedimenta_ , both of them being blocked like he expected, before he threw an _Incarcerous_ towards her legs. With a grace and speed that surprised him, she held the shield in place and was able to dodge the Binding Spell with ease.

"I've seen you use that tactic before," she explained to him after seeing his surprise. It had always worked. "I knew to keep an eye out for it," she said before she threw several spells of her own at him.

It continued in the same fashion for several minutes, parrying back and forth with spells and hexes and dodging and shielding against the others'. It was easy to see they were both tiring and Hermione saw an opening and took it. She hit Fred with two Stunners and followed that with a Stinging and Slicing Hex. His shield shattered under the force and both Hexes caught him in the face.

He let out a sound of surprise and followed it with a wince and Hermione gasped in horror and rushed over to him.

"Merlin, Fred! I'm so sorry," she said, looking truly upset and angry with herself.

He gave her a lopsided grin, despite the stinging in his eye and the cut on his cheekbone. "Don't worry about it, Hermione. It wasn't your fault, I let my shield drop too soon as I didn't see you send those last two hexes my way, I've got to say, non-verbal magic? That's quite impressive."

"I really am sorry, Fred, I didn't mean to hurt you," she said.

"I know, it wasn't your fault," he repeated, bringing his arm up to his face so he could wipe the blood away with the sleeve of his jumper.

"Don't do that," Hermione scolded, reaching out to stop him from touching his injuries. "You'll make them worse, come here," she said, taking his hand in hers and pulling him over to the corner of the room.

Fred looked down at his hand held by her smaller one and his mouth tugged at the corners before he looked over his shoulder to see a surprised Lee staring at him, and George who gave him a thumbs-up, not in the least bit worried about his injuries.

He turned his attention back to Hermione and saw a maroon coloured armchair appear and she gestured for him to sit on it, making her taller than him. He felt the loss of her hand when she removed it, but he was soon placated as she gently cupped her hand around his chin and tilted his head this way and that to get a better look at the damage caused, her teeth worrying at her lip and her brow furrowed. It was hard to look away from her.

"Thankfully the Slicing Hex missed your eye, so I can have it fixed up in a jiffy, and the swelling from the Stinging Hex will take a few minutes to go down, afterwards I'll heal the cut," She told him.

She brought her wand up to his face and gently pressed the tip of it just beneath his eye, her brow furrowing in concentration as she muttered the counter curse beneath her breath. It took a few minutes for the swelling to go down and she turned her attention to the cut on his cheekbone, washing away the blood, cleaning the wound and then sealing it, all the while Fred never took his eyes off her.

"There, all done, how does it feel?" She asked, removing her wand and her hand from his face.

"Still stings a little," he shrugged. "But do you know what would make me feel better?"

"What?"

"A kiss," he said, giving her a cheeky smile. "You did nearly kill me after all."

She scoffed. "I don't think so,"

"Alright, maybe I'm over exaggerating a little, blinded me then." She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. "And for compensation for the trauma I've just faced, I think you should kiss my poor face better."

"And why would you want me to do that?" She asked, looking confused.

"You're a beautiful witch, who wouldn't want a kiss from you?"

She tilted her head to the side. "I can't tell if you're being serious or not," she said before shaking her head. "I'm not kissing you better," she said and he all but pouted at her. She dug her hand into her robe pocket before removing a small paper bag which she held out for him.

He eyed it warily before sticking his hand inside the bag and pulling back with a sugar quill in his hand. He blinked in surprise before a smile pulled at his face. She _never_ shared her sugar quills.

"You sit here and wait for the stinging to wear off, I better go and help Neville," she said, turning on her heel and heading over to the accident-prone wizard.

Not long later found the D.A meeting being over and everyone sneaking out of the room and back to their common rooms.

"Hey, Hermione?" Fred called, moving to catch up with her. "Are you heading to the library?" He asked, falling into step beside her.

"Yes, why?"

"Can I join you?"

"More research for products?" She sounded both curious and disapproving, making him chuckle.

"No, I have a potions essay to work on, Snape's the only one I make sure to have my work done on time for."

"Smart," she nodded.

"So, I'll meet you there? I just have to get my things from my dorm."

"Okay, any books in particular you need? I'll find them out ready for you."

He gave her a wide smile. "You're an Angel," he said, making her blush. He'd grown to like the red colouring on her. After giving her a list of the books he needed, they went their separate ways.

"Oi! George!"

Fred turned to look over his shoulder, seeing a frowning Ron approaching him.

"I'm Fred," he said.

"Whatever, it doesn't matter, what's going on with you and Hermione?"

Fred raised an eyebrow. "Why?" He asked his little brother.

He'd known since day one that Ron had had a crush on Hermione, it being one of the reasons he was so mean to her, you know, a boy pulling a girl's pigtails and all that? But after he'd witnessed Ron's mistreatment of Hermione the year before and knowing that he hadn't done anything to show he cared for Hermione in a way other than friendship, he'd just assumed he no longer had a crush on her.

Ron's hand clenched into fists and his cheeks turned red. "She's my friend, that's why."

Fred tilted his head to the side slightly. "Are you jealous of me spending time with her?"

"No," Ron spat out. "Why would I be, it's just Hermione?"

"Hmmm," Fred hummed thoughtfully. "Not that it's any of your business but I like spending time with her. She's intelligent and..."

"So that's it, you're using her for your homework?"

Fred felt anger of his own build. How dare he think that?

"No, I'm not, unlike some people I actually do my own work," Fred said, barely containing his anger and glaring at Ron. "She may help me find the books I need, but that's it. And if you don't start doing your own work and you don't stop putting pressure on Hermione, I'm going to tell mum."

Ron blinked in surprise at the threat, knowing the twins never threatened any member of the family with their mother, it was always pranks.

"Wait, since when is she Hermione to you?" Ron frowned.

"A while," he shrugged.

"What's going on with you?"

"None of your business, and I think it's best for your health that you stop upsetting Hermione. Whatever you say to her, whatever it is you do to hurt her, stop it, or I'll be forced to take action and I won't be merciful."

Turning on his heel, he left behind his spluttering little brother.

~000~000~000~

**Two weeks later...**

Two weeks later found Fred wandering the castle in search of Hermione, after her having missed their scheduled library visit they'd set up a couple of days before. Knowing Hermione and her dislike for tardiness, he knew something wasn't right and soon went in search of her.

In the last couple of weeks, it was clear Hermione had grown used to him being around her more often and she'd grown comfortable in his presence, though it didn't stop her from blushing when he gave her compliments. The last few weeks he'd spent a good portion of his time running interference, trying to keep the other wizards away from Hermione and George had done his fair share, too; Fred couldn't deny he was a great wingman. He'd been plucking up the courage to ask Hermione out on a date and he'd finally done so and had planned to do it that evening, but she hadn't shown up to the library. In fact, he hadn't seen her since she left the great hall after dinner a couple of hours ago.

He'd already checked the entire library, the common room, asked Hermione's roommates if she were in her dorm and checked the few classrooms he knew she sometimes hid away in, but he hadn't found her. Now he was on his last option, the Room of Requirements, and if she wasn't there he planned on resorting to drastic measures, pulling both Harry and Ron in with the aid of the Marauder's Map.

Coming to a stop at the end of the corridor and making sure he hadn't been followed, he paced back and forth three times, asking for the room Hermione was hidden away in and much to his relief, a door appeared. Stepping into the room, the door disappeared and his eyes took in his new surroundings, a fireplace being on the back wall of the room with lit flames dancing, and there was a plush rug in front of it. Positioned opposite the fire was a comfortable looking couch adorned with cushions, and a wooden coffee table sat in front of it. In the corner of the room, there was a large four-poster bed, the bedding being dark in colour, the pillows looking soft and cushions covered most of the bed.

Fred's eyes were instantly drawn to the couch when he heard a noise, but not seeing anything he moved closer, coming to a stop at the side of it. A frown pulled at his face and he felt himself saddening at the sight that met him; Hermione being dressed in white and pink fleece pyjamas and a pair of bunny slippers on her feet, as she laid on the couch curled into a ball with a cushion held tightly against her and her face buried against it, it muffling the sounds of her cries and sniffles.

"Hermione?" Fred said quietly.

He visibly saw her stiffen before she slowly removed her face from the cushion to sneak a look at him, his heart breaking at her red, tear-stained face and her puffy eyes.

"What happened?"

"Nothing, I'm fine," she replied, "How did you find me, what are you doing here?" She asked, pulling herself into a sitting position, crossing her legs and holding the cushion to her chest as she reached up to wipe her tears away.

"You're clearly not fine," he said, moving to sit beside her on the couch. "And you didn't meet me at the library like we planned, after ten minutes I knew something wasn't right so I came looking for you, this was my last place to look."

"I forgot," she muttered.

His frown deepened; when did she forget about going to the library?

"What happened?"

"Nothing, I'm fine."

"Confess, Hermione, if I have to I'll question everyone in the castle and I'll start with Ron." He saw her eyes harden, letting him know it was something to do with his idiot little brother. "What's he done now? And if you say 'nothing' I'll resort to dangerous measures in order to extract the truth from you."

Hermione turned to look at the fireplace, her eyes watching the dancing flames. "He just said some things that I didn't appreciate," she said quietly.

"Such as?" He asked. She shrugged her shoulders. "Hermione, whatever he said to you has upset you so much that you've hidden away from everyone and are crying to yourself in your pyjamas."

Her cheeks tinted red. "He asked if I really thought I should have dessert this evening, as I've seemed to have put on some weight."

"He said that?" Fred said, unable to hide his surprise at the sheer stupidity of his younger brother.

"Not only did he say it, but he said it loud enough for the entire school populace to hear," she muttered.

Fred frowned slightly before realisation hit him; he hadn't heard it because he and George had been speaking about the progress of some of their products and they'd done so under a Silencing Charm, not wanting anyone to overhear them, especially Umbridge, who was proving to be a pain in their arses for more than just one reason.

"There's nothing wrong with your weight, Hermione," Fred spoke.

"I know that, I'm average weight for someone of my height," she said. "But that doesn't stop what he said from hurting my feelings, and it's not going to stop Malfoy and the rest of the Slytherins from insulting me, not only on my appearance, blood status and work ethics, but now my weight, too."

Fred scowled, he'd make sure nothing would come of Ron's insensitive comment and he'd get George's help, too. He had a long night ahead of him.

"Hermione, he's a prat,"

"I know he is," she replied. "But he's also supposed to be my best friend and lately he's been acting like he hates me, like I'm not good enough to be around him."

"More like the other way around," Fred muttered.

"And while his comments hurt me, what hurts me more is how insensitive he is to me towards this time of the month."

"Meaning?" He asked confused. She cocked an eyebrow and understanding soon followed. "Oh, right, _that_ time of the month."

She tilted her head slightly, seeing that his facial expression hadn't once changed, neither had his body language and he sat perfectly still, looking comfortable.

"You're not embarrassed?" She asked, sounding surprised.

"Why would I be?"

She frowned. "Ron and Harry certainly are."

"It's a normal thing women have to deal with. They need to grow up," he shrugged his shoulders.

"I know they do," she sighed. "I mean, I deal with cramps, backache, headaches, nausea and swollen feet, as well as bloating, which is why Ronald so kindly pointed out that I was fatter than I was last week. The last thing I need is him being insensitive and making fun of me for something that is beyond my control."

He titled his head slightly. "How are you feeling now?"

"Do you care?"

"Yes," he answered honestly.

She eyed him carefully before answering. "Not too bad, I suppose. My back hurts no matter how many Pain Relief Potions I have in my system and if I take anymore, I risk putting myself in the hospital wing."

"Do you want me to give you a massage?"

"What?" She blurted out, turning to look at him with wide eyes.

"I remember dad used to do it for mum when I was little, it used to help ease the pain. Your backache might not actually be a symptom of your menstrual cycle, but from carrying around your school bag and heavy books all day."

"I..."

"I don't bite, Hermione," he said amused, seeing her cheeks darkening. "Come on, turn around," he said, motioning with his index finger for her to do so.

"But..."

"It might help ease the pain, what have you got to lose?" He raised an eyebrow.

She cleared her throat before she put the cushion she was holding off to the side and she turned around so her back was to him and she was facing the wall. He shifted on the couch, moving closer to her and getting himself more comfortable while making it easier to complete his task of helping to ease her pain and discomfort.

The moment he brushed her hair over one shoulder and he settled his hands on her shoulders, he felt her stiffen beneath him. He set to work easing the knots and aches out of her shoulders with Hermione sitting ramrod straight, her body tensing more as each minute went past.

"Relax, Hermione," he chuckled. "This is going to be pointless if you don't."

Despite his words, she didn't, not until he reached the junction of her shoulder and neck and he found a particularly large knot. As he worked at it with his fingers, a soft sigh left Hermione and he felt her body relax, her posture slouching slightly. It took a little while to remove the knot and then he moved to the other side, repeating the process.

"Is it helping?"

"Yes," she admitted quietly.

She moved to get herself more comfortable, pulling her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them and then leaning forward to rest her forehead against her knees, exposing the back of her neck to him. He soon moved to attend to it, placing his thumbs on either side of her spine and dragging them downwards and a sigh sounded from her, pulling a smile to his mouth.

"If you have back pain next month and Pain Potions aren't helping, tell me and I'll give you a massage. In fact, even if you just have a backache from carrying around your bag and books all day, just let me know."

"You don't have to do that, Fred."

"I know, but if I can make your life a little easier, then I will. It's the least you deserve; you're a Saint for putting up with Ron. I don't know how you do it, George and I spend most of our time avoiding him when at The Burrow, even during our childhood he was a pain in the arse, it's one of the reasons we pranked him so much."

"Is it true you turned his teddy bear into a spider, and that you locked him in a cupboard?"

"Yeah," Fred said proudly.

"How'd you do that at such a young age?"

"Accidental magic. We hadn't intended for it to happen, but it was hilarious when it did. I remember we were just talking about how funny it would be if Ron's bear suddenly transformed into a spider, and then it just happened."

"Even your magic knew you were born to be pranksters," Hermione commented.

His hands stilled momentarily, having heard the lack of disapproval in her tone.

"I thought you hated our pranks," he said.

"When have I ever said I hated your pranks?"

"All the time, you're always giving George and me disapproving looks or threatening to tell our mum."

She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't hate your pranks, Fred, I just think there's a time and place for them. Doing them in the common room or during the holidays, fair enough, but when you do them during lesson times you're disrupting the learning of others, and for those students that already have difficulty with focusing, it only makes it harder on them. And I don't approve of you conning first years into testing your products, they're too young and naive; they have no idea what you and George are capable of."

"So you _don't_ hate our pranking?" He asked both surprised and pleased.

"I don't hate your pranking," she confessed. "If I'm being honest, I think you're brilliant."

"You do?"

"Hmm, of course I do, I've always known you were creative and you obviously had to have some talent for spell casting and spell creation giving what some of your products are capable of, but after seeing the books you've been reading, I now understand that you're far more intelligent than I or other people realise. I doubt I would be able to do what you do."

"You're the smartest person at Hogwarts," he brushed off her compliment, feeling himself squirm a little in his seat and feeling nervous.

"I'm not, there's plenty people smarter than me, and you're one of them. What I've realised over the years is that exams and tests are unable to get a true measurement of your intelligence. Take Dean Thomas for example, he's not a bad student when it comes to doing practical work, but when it comes to doing theory, writing essays and taking exams, he panics and due to his panic, he barely passes. I know for a fact he knows everything as I helped him study. Some people handle the pressure well and others don't," she shrugged her shoulders. "There's different types of intelligence, such as academic, musical, social and creative. I fall under academics; you and George would be creative and maybe even social, too. You're a lot more comfortable in social situations than I am since I was an only child and I was excluded from others when I was in my muggle school. They found me odd and would bully me for the fact I liked to read and strange things would happen around me."

"Anyway, my point is that you're incredibly intelligent and whilst I don't approve of your pranking of the first years or carrying out pranks during lesson times, I can see the creativity, hard work and effort you put into them, and for that, I can't help be impressed by you."

He didn't know how to respond, being too surprised to actually form words. Hell, he couldn't wait to see George's reaction when he revealed what Hermione had told him, he was sure his twin would have dragons and then later try to convince her to help them with their new products; her knowledge would be invaluable.

Shaking his head, he moved his hands lower, towards the middle of her back and worked at her spine and sides, trying to think of something to say.

"Confession time," Fred said.

"Hmmm?" Hermione hummed, sounding half asleep.

"It's something George and I say to each other when we know there's something we need to get off our chests. So, Hermione, it's time to make a confession."

"About what?"

"Anything, it can be about anything, but it has to be something no one else knows."

"What about you? Anything you reveal George already likely knows."

"That's true, but that doesn't count as he's my twin. No one else but George will know something I may reveal to you, not any of my other siblings or my parents. So, what do you have to confess to, Miss. Granger?"

She fell silent for a moment and he could practically hear her mind deciding whether or not she could reveal her secrets to someone else.

"I've never told anyone this before but..." Fred leaned in closer in anticipation. "I hate history of magic."

He leaned back and blinked in surprise. Well, he hadn't expected that. He'd expected something far more interesting, but he shook his head. Well, he'd take it as a warm-up confession.

"Aren't you always arguing with Ron over the importance of the subject?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow and moving his hands a little lower on her back.

"Yes," she sighed, leaning forward a little more to give him better access to her lower back. "I do think learning the history of the Wizarding World is important, it allows us to better understand what those before us had to go through, what they had to sacrifice to a build a better world, to build the world we now live in. It allows us to learn of past mistakes so they can't be repeated. But I hate it. Professor Binns is the most boring teacher I've ever had the displeasure of being taught by, it's so hard for me to stay awake during the class and I won't give Ron the satisfaction of falling asleep."

"Well, that's not what I was expecting," he admitted. "But given your love for academics and learning, I can see why you would be hesitant about telling someone of your hate for a subject."

"Well, it's your turn."

"I confess, when I was thirteen I pranked George and blamed it on Charlie."

"Wait, what?" She questioned, her voice showing her surprise. "Since when do you prank each other?"

" _Never_ , which is why I never told George. To this day he still doesn't know it was me."

"What did he do for you to break your number one rule?"

"My voice broke before his did and he found it hilarious and spent an entire week making fun of me, until his voice broke soon after. So, I pranked him and seeing as we had a bit of a prank war going on with Charlie at the time, he automatically got the blame."

"Merlin, I don't even know how to respond to that."

He chuckled at her. "Don't be revealing my secret to anyone, especially George, he'll cry and scream betrayal from the rafters for a month," he said. Hermione laughed at him, the sound being soft and musical and a smile pulled at his mouth. "Your turn,"

She fell silent again, mulling over her next response.

"I confess, my relationship with Viktor wasn't exactly what I led people to believe."

His hands stilled on her back and he felt his breathing stop before he remembered he needed oxygen to live and he took a deep breath.

"Meaning?" He asked, unsure if he actually wanted to hear the answer or not.

She shrugged her shoulders. "After seeing Ron's reaction to my being Viktor's date to the Yule Ball and seeing the response it got from the media as well as the students, we thought it best to keep it quiet."

"Keep what quiet?"

"That it wasn't just a friendship between us. He was my boyfriend."

In surprise, Fred's hand fell from her back completely and he blinked several times, trying to process the news. Lifting her head from her knees, she looked over her shoulder at him for the first time in nearly half an hour.

"You alright?" She asked, frowning in worry.

Taking a deep breath, he nodded. "Fine," he cleared his throat. "So you and Viktor were together?" He asked. She nodded. "Are you still together now?" He questioned, needing to know and hoping to Merlin, Circe and the Founders that she was single.

He'd been half in love with her for over a year now and after plucking up the courage to finally do something about it, after spending all his time running interference with her other admirers and planning his next steps, he hoped it hadn't all been for nothing.

"No," she shook her head.

Fred would swear he had never felt so relieved in his life and he hoped she hadn't noticed it in his expression or in the way his entire body relaxed back into the couch. She turned back around and away from him and he brought his hands back to her back, continuing where he'd left off.

"After the Yule Ball, when Ron and I had the argument, Viktor found me and it took him a while to calm me down and once he did, he asked me to be his girlfriend. Given Ron's reaction and Viktor's celebrity status, we both wanted to keep our relationship quiet; me wanting to avoid more conflict with Ron and Viktor wanting to protect me from the press and his fans. It was hard to spend time together but we made it work. When it came to the end of the year, I made the decision to end our relationship. As much I cared for him I had to be realistic about our chances of remaining together. He had to go home to Bulgaria, graduate Durmstrang and return to the Vrasta Vultures. His life would've never been accommodating of me no matter how hard we may have tried."

"Did you love him?"

"I cared for him very much, adored him really, but I don't think I did. When he left to go home, I didn't feel devastated or lost without him. I didn't feel like my life was coming to an end or that I would never be happy again. I suppose I missed him for a little while, but I think that may have been because he was around me so often I'd grown used to his presence. It's like how I miss Harry and Ron when I'm at home with my parents," she shrugged her shoulders.

Well, that was a relief, he thought; now he didn't have to worry about being compared to her ex-boyfriend.

"How'd you sneak around without anyone finding out?"

"With difficulty, but I think Harry suspected and he kept Ron distracted when I disappeared, and I know Viktor's friends knew about our relationship so they helped us, too. We mostly spent a lot of time in the library."

His hands stilled once more.

"In your hiding place?"

"No," she shook her head. "I meant what I said when I told you I had only ever shown you where it was." He felt a wide smile pull at his face. "Before we started dating, Viktor used to follow me to the library and watch me whilst I studied and I didn't want to risk him following me there. As I said, we spent a lot of time together and sometimes I just needed some time to myself and I didn't want him finding me, so I never told him about it."

Fred couldn't help feeling very pleased and very smug at that moment.

Hermione let out a sigh and she shuffled forward, giving him better access to the small of her back. A chuckle left him and slowly his slipped his hands underneath her fleece jumper, his hands splaying on her hips. He waited for her to voice her disapproval and she never so he placed his thumbs on the dimples on the small of her back and dragged them outwards towards her hips, a muffled groan falling from her lips.

"Your turn to make a confession," she said, sounding sleepy.

Fred didn't speak and he was glad Hermione remained silent, allowing him time to gather his thoughts and courage. He'd decided he was going to confess his feelings for her, but first, he had to convince himself to do it.

"I confess," he started softly, nervously, "That I wish to ask you a question." He took a deep breath. "Hermione, will you..." A light snore caught his attention and his words trailed off.

His eyes moved to her shoulders, seeing the way they moved up and down with a rhythmic pattern. She'd fallen asleep!

He shook his head, a slight laugh of disbelief falling from his lips. He'd taken so long to gather the courage to finally ask her out that she'd fallen asleep. Some Gryffindor he was. Despite that, he chose to look at the positives. She's felt so comfortable with him that she'd fallen asleep in his presence, allowing him to see her at her most vulnerable. He'd take it as a win.

Removing his hands from her hips, he stood from the couch and walked over to the bed, drawing back the covers and moving the cushions out of the way. He made his way back over to the couch before bending down to lift Hermione into his arms, being careful not to jostle her too much that she woke. Carrying her over to the bed, he set her down on the soft mattress, removed her slippers and covered her with the duvet.

He watched her for a few moments, seeing her peaceful and relaxed state before he left her alone and stepped out of the room, his intended destination being the Gryffindor common room to search for his twin.

He had a lot of planning to do in order to keep the Slytherins from making fun of Hermione, and he had a special project to complete for his dear little brother. He'd warned him not to upset Hermione, and Ron hadn't listened so he was going to learn that it was a mistake.

It was a good job it was Friday night and they had no classes in the morning; it was going to be a very long night.

~000~000~000~

**Four days later...**

Four days later found Fred coming down the steps of the boy's staircase and stepping into the common room, an annoyed expression pulling at his face when he saw Hermione curled up on an armchair by the fire with a book in her hand, and Seamus Finnegan, Ron and Harry sitting on the couch opposite her. Seamus was leaning over in an attempt to be closer to Hermione as he said something to her which he followed with a wink and Hermione laughed lightly and shook her head.

He'd thought he'd already taken care of Finnegan! Merlin knows he'd already scared off both Terry Boot and Cormac McLaggen and the latter hadn't been easy, but Seamus was proving to be a pain in the arse.

"I've got your back, o'twin of mine," George came up behind him and clapped him on the shoulder.

George stepped around him and dramatically bounded over to Hermione, pushing the little table out of the way and dropping to the ground on one knee, holding his hands to his chest in a begging gesture and fully pulling her attention away from Seamus.

"Oh Hermione, the beautiful Goddess of Knowledge, Wisdom and Riotous Curls, please o'please will you help a mere mortal wizard? I beg of you, impart on me some of your wisdom."

Hermione gave him a look of amusement. "Try using poppy seeds rather than sunflower seeds, substitute fairy wings for pixie wings and use soap shavings over candle wax."

Fred watched his brother blink slowly before a wide smile pulled at his face; he jumped up from the ground and leaned over, grabbing onto Hermione and hugging her tightly.

"You beautiful witch, that's brilliant!" George exclaimed, pressing a kiss to Hermione's forehead, pulling back from her and running back over to Fred. "Marry her!" George exclaimed, but he was sure to do it quietly enough so no one else but him would hear.

He clapped Fred on the shoulder and ran past him up the stairs, his intended destination being their dorm room where they had a large cauldron stashed in the corner of the room.

George's disturbance had caused enough chaos that Hermione had soon gone back to her book and Seamus was trying to get her attention once more. Scowling, he slipped his hands into his pockets and calmly walked over to Hermione, stopping by her armchair and a warm smile settling on his face when he saw which book she was reading. _Hogwarts, a History_ ; he should've known.

"Hey, Hermione," he said.

She looked away from her book and gave him a smile, his own smile widening in response at seeing her looking genuinely happy to see him.

"Hi, Fred,"

"How are you feeling? Any cramps, backache?" He heard rather than saw Ron, Seamus and Harry all shift on the couch.

"No more cramps, thank Merlin," she responded.

"Backache?"

"A little," she admitted.

Without another word, Fred surprised everyone when he climbed up onto the armchair behind her, sitting on the back of it and his feet resting on the cushion. He reached out and placed his hands on her shoulders and started to work at the knots she'd quickly rebuilt. Hermione let out a sigh and his mouth twitched, feeling pleased when she leaned back against his legs to get more comfortable and she returned her attention to her book.

Fred was more than aware of the surprised stares he was receiving, and he looked to the three younger wizards opposite him.

"Have you done something to your hair, Ron? It looks different," Fred said innocently, bringing attention to the fact Ron's hair was now a hideous green colour. It being hideous because it was Slytherin green. His eyebrows had changed, too, now being silver in colour. It was his revenge for Ron upsetting Hermione, and he'd gotten a great laugh out of it that morning at breakfast, as had Hermione which he was most happy about.

Ron glared at him, refusing to answer and Hermione looked up from her book, her eyes flittering between him and Ron, a curious, suspicious look entering her eyes. He gave her an innocent smile and she narrowed her eyes at him before shaking her head and turning back to her book.

"You're sure you're alright?" Fred asked.

"Yes, my period was over a few days ago, I'm good for the next twenty-seven days."

"Merlin, Hermione, do you have to talk about it!" Ron said, looking disgusted, his face a confusing shade or white-red.

Fred beat Hermione to a response. "Grow up, Ron," Fred snapped, surprising everyone close enough to have heard. "It's a witch's period; talking about it is not going to kill you. It's a normal thing that occurs to every witch and allows for the growth of the wizarding population. It's not a witch's fault she has to suffer from bad stomach cramps, or backache and nausea, or even bloating, making them appear to have put on weight when they haven't," he said, making Ron's eyes widen and his gaze flickered between him and Hermione in surprise. "And when a witch is suffering from such symptoms, you should do your best to help make things easier for her. Hermione has enough to deal with without you making her feel bad for something she has no control over, for something that's normal. Stop being an arsehole and grow up, if you don't I'll make sure mum has the Dragons and Hippogriffs talk with you, Bill's told me it's left him traumatised."

It was clear that the entirety of the common room had heard Fred's speech and both witches and wizards stared at him in silence. Ignoring them all, he turned his eyes to Hermione who was looking at him over her shoulder, her eyes wide and her mouth hung open. It was the most shocked he'd seen her.

"So, Hermione, I was wondering if I could pick that wonderfully big brain of yours," Fred said. Hermione pulled herself together and closed her mouth, about to respond but he beat her to it. "Not now, of course, I can see you're busy reading, how about tomorrow over breakfast? I'll meet you in the common room and we can head down together."

She raised an eyebrow. "You do know I'm always the first one in the great hall, don't you?"

"Of course, so I'll meet here at eight o'clock?"

"Seven," she corrected. "The great hall doors open at seven for students."

"They do? Since when?"

"Since forever," she said amused.

He frowned. That meant he had to set his alarm for an hour earlier, he supposed he'd better go to bed early that night.

"Right, seven o'clock on the dot. I won't be late."

"You're late to everything; it's one of your talents."

"I won't be late," he promised. He'd make sure he'd be the one waiting for her tomorrow morning.

~000~000~000~

**One week later...**

"Hey, Fred, wait up!"

Fred came to a stop, looking over his shoulder and a smile coming to his face when he saw Hermione quickly making her way towards the edge of the pitch where the Gryffindor team were taking their places, waiting for them to be announced for the first game of the season.

George gave him a subtle thumbs up before attracting the attention of the rest of the team, encouraging them to keep moving forward and Fred was more than aware of the less than pleased look Katie Bell sent towards Hermione.

Hermione stopped in front of him. Her cheeks were lightly flushed, her breathing a little heavier than normal, her hair windswept and her nose red from the cold and she was bundled up in her cloak and a knitted hat and scarf.

"Here to give me a good luck kiss?" He asked her cheekily.

"What? No, of course not. You don't need luck, I know you're going to smash it, you always do."

He felt himself stand taller and puff his chest out in pride.

"I found this," she said.

She pulled out a rather large, rather old looking book that he'd never seen before from beneath her robe and she opened it to the bookmarked page before turning it around for him to see. He allowed his eyes to drop down, seeing the coloured sticky note marking out the section she wanted to show him and after quickly reading it over, his eyes widened and his mouth pulled into a smile. It was a playing strategy specifically designed for beaters, one that he'd never seen or heard of before, let alone tried himself. Not only would that give them an advantage over the opposing team, but it was really easy to pull off, too. He and George could probably get it on their first attempt.

"You beautiful little witch!" Fred exclaimed, reaching out and pulling her into a hug so tight it knocked the breath out of her. "You're brilliant!" He complimented, pulling back from her, dropping a kiss to her cheek before turning and running off to tell George the good news.

~000~000~000~

It had been a long game of three hours, his fingers and face so numb he could barely feel them, his arms and hands aching from his grip on his bat and beating away the bludgers, and his legs were sore from having been on his broom for so long, but it was all worth it. They'd won.

As soon as he lowered himself to the ground and the Gryffindors were invading the pitch to celebrate with the team, he found himself behind pulled into a hug by an extremely excited Hermione. He laughed before wrapping his arms around her and hugging her to him more firmly, burying his cold nose against her hair and allowing her scent of jasmine and lemons to fill his nose.

"That was brilliant. I told you that you didn't need luck. You were brilliant. I'm so proud of you!" Hermione exclaimed.

Fred found it very difficult to let her go when she pulled back from him, but he was soon smiling again when she bounced up on her tiptoes, pressing a kiss to his cold cheek with her warm, soft lips before she turned and left him to go in search of Harry and Ron.

Fred knew it. He was smitten and he couldn't wait any longer. He had to have her. She had to be his.

~000~000~000~

**Two weeks later...**

Two weeks later had Fred spending as much time as possible with Hermione. He'd been studying with her in the library three nights a week and eating breakfast with her almost five mornings a week, and he'd even managed to sit with her for lunch and dinner once or twice. He'd partnered with her in the D.A meetings a total of four times, granted she still beat him in a duel every time but he was wising up to her tricks and each duel lasted longer than next. He'd accompanied her on walks through the castle and since the snow had made an appearance with it being late November, moving into early December, he'd even managed to pull her into a snowball fight. She'd won after bewitching the snowballs to follow him around. He'd been trying to convince her to teach him that trick for days now but she was holding strong.

He'd never put so much effort into going after a witch before, but Merlin did he know she was worth it.

The more time he spent with her, the more he fell for her, and the more he realised she was perfect for him. Perfect for him in every way. With her smaller size and frame, she fit against him perfectly and with her intelligence and wit, she kept him on his toes. Where she was punctual and well put together and organised, he was tardy and chaotic. They had their similarities and their differences, and it worked for them. All he had to do was get her to see that and he planned on doing so that evening.

He'd cornered Hermione in the common room and convinced her to bundle up warm as he wished to show her something on the castle grounds.

"Where are you taking me?" Hermione asked him, pulling her cloak around herself tighter and ducking her head down a little.

"It's a surprise," he smiled at her.

They soon reached the Black Lake and Hermione give him a cautious look, making him laugh. He shook his head and reached out for her hand, his courage growing as she didn't protest or try to pull back from him.

He led her around the lake and soon they came to a collection of trees she'd never noticed before. Fred smiled at her and brushed aside the thick bushes, revealing an opening in the trunk of the tree, certainly large enough for a person to fit through.

Looking curious, she stepped inside and into the darkness being unable to see anything. Fred gave her hand a squeeze before he led her down a staircase formed of mud, leaves and vines and a bright glow soon appeared, piquing Hermione's interest. Fred had been hunched over due to the low ceilings but once they came to a doorway and stepped through, the ceiling was soon as high as the great hall's and they were bathed in warmth and light.

A gasp left Hermione as she took in the sight that met her. It was like some mystical, underground lair. In the centre of the room sat a large table that had a single chair and it was easy to see they'd both been handmade. A small, single bed was off in the corner of the room and although it looked messy and unmade, it looked like it hadn't been slept in for years. On the wall to the left was a series of bookcases, and spying some of the titles from where she stood, she knew them to be very old, too. Most of the books were covered in a thick layer of dust but were surprisingly well kept and she had a feeling that she wouldn't find anything on the shelves that had been published since the turn of the century, probably even before that.

Hearing a light buzzing sound Hermione's head tilted up, a soft gasp falling from her lips as she saw that above their heads were thousands and thousands of fairies flittering about, their little wings moving so fast her eyes could barely see them moving.

Fred's mouth pulled into a smile at her reaction. She turned to look at him, her eyes wide and alight with wonder.

"I found this place a few years ago; I think this used to be the living quarters for the care of magical creatures professor back in the 1800s. It doesn't show on the map because it's too far underground. I don't know how long they've been here," he gestured above them, "But given the amount of them I'd say it's been a few decades at least."

"What are we doing here? Why did you show me this place?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "You allowed me into the sanctuary of your hideaway; I thought I'd show you mine. This is where I come when I need time alone, to sort through my thoughts or if I hit a bit of a snag in product development. No one knows about this place, not even George."

Hermione blinked at him slowly and then turned her eyes upwards, watching the fairies once more. Stepping closer to her, he positioned himself behind her so his chest hit her back and he heard her breath hitch. Feeling a smile pull at his face, he reached down for her hand, holding it up with her palm facing upwards.

"What are you doing?" She asked quietly.

"Watch," he replied in a mutter, his breath tickling her skin as he lowered his head to speak into her ear.

It wasn't a long wait as soon a single fairy flittered down to them, looking directly into his eyes and he gave the little being a nod of encouragement, knowing the fairy would trust him, and it lowered itself onto Hermione's hand, its weight being so light she would barely feel it.

A gasp of surprise left Hermione and she remained perfectly still as the little fairy titled its head to the side, regarding her carefully.

"How's this possible?" Hermione whispered.

"I've been coming here since I was thirteen, they know me and they trust me. At first, they were wary of me seeing as I had technically invaded their territory but they grew used to my presence after a while."

Silence fell upon them until a second fairy flittered down to them, landing on Hermione's open palm and watching the other fairy intensely.

"They're lovers," Fred whispered into her ear, her breath hitching in response. "She's Princess Luparia, the daughter of the Fairy King, Nebula, and he reigns over the fairies that reside on the east side of the Forbidden Forest and on Hogwarts' grounds. The other fairy, that's Aphid, he's a servant to the Princess and they've been in love since they were children, but the Princess is promised to the Fairy Prince Diaspro of the west side of the Forest."

"That's so beautifully sad," she said quietly, watching the way the two fairies seemed to flitter about each other as if they were dancing.

"The King has forbidden them from being together. The last time I was here, they were planning on running away together. Princess Luparia was going to give up her title and it would be passed onto her younger sister, Princess Salle, who would then be expected to marry Prince Diaspro."

"How do you know all this?"

"She told me, Princess Luparia. She was the first one to approach me and she soon learned to trust me. I guess you could say we formed a bond. I didn't know fairies were capable of understanding the human language until she spoke to me. Only those born of royal blood are able to communicate with humans, and she told me about her life."

"That's incredible," Hermione whispered, not wanting to disturb the two fairies that were flittering about on her hand and never once did they take their gaze away from each other. She frowned when the two fairies suddenly sprung apart as if they'd been stung and they both flew off, mixing back in with the others above them.

"King Nebula must've returned and they didn't want to be caught together," Fred explained, not removing his hand from hers even after she'd lowered it back down to her side.

"It's beautiful here, thank you for trusting me enough to share it with me," she said, her eyes searching for King Nebula, but there were so many fairies and they were so small that she couldn't identify him even if she knew what he looked like.

"It's my safe haven, and now it can be yours, too."

"Thank you," she said, giving him a smile and looking at him over her shoulder.

In that moment, there was something about Hermione that made her irresistible to him. Maybe it was her bright eyes, maybe it was the glow of the fairies bathing her skin, maybe it was the flush in her cheeks or her soft smile, but in that moment he really wanted to kiss her, so he threw caution to the wind and leaned down, pressing his mouth against hers.

She pulled away from him almost immediately with wide eyes and a confused frown on her face, taking a step away from him when he took a step towards her.

"Why did you bring me here, Fred?" She asked him, narrowing her eyes at him and crossing her arms over her chest protectively. "Why didn't you bring Katie here?"

He frowned. "Why would I do that?"

"You're together, right?"

"What? Merlin, no! We're not together, I swear it. Where'd you hear that?"

"She was telling girls in the common room that you were."

Fred sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Hermione, she's lying. At the begging of the school year, she kissed me and I told her I only saw her as a friend. Angie told George what she's been saying and I told him the truth. Angie promised she'd get Katie to stop spreading the rumours."

"What about Claire Foy? Meredith White? Laura Geoffries? They all say you broke their hearts."

Fred rolled his eyes, which he probably shouldn't have done as her eyes narrowed into slits.

"Hermione, I've never been in a relationship with any of them. They came onto me and I rejected them, so they tell people that I'm the one that hurt them, that I'm the one to blame. I have no reason to lie to you."

"Not unless you want something from me. But I'm not falling for it, Fred. Not a chance in hell."

Hermione shoved past him and ran back up the stairs and out onto the grounds.

"Hermione! Wait!" He called after her, but she didn't stop.

He knew there was no point in chasing after her. He let out a noise of frustration and ran his hand through his hair. Well, he'd gone and screwed that up spectacularly, hadn't he?

"Bloody hell," he muttered.

He had to fix it. He couldn't let her get away from him, not now.

~000~000~000~

**The next day...**

"I've got to say, I'm impressed," George said, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest and watching Fred as he stood in front of the mirror, fixing his school tie and trying to make his hair look less messy.

"With?" Fred muttered, untying his tie and tying it again nervously.

"Hermione, I've never seen a witch have you so out of sorts. And she's certainly made you work for it. She's got you wrapped around her little finger and she doesn't even know it. I never thought I'd see the day," George shook his head.

Fred turned his eyes to George. "Since when do you call her Hermione?"

George shrugged. "Since she's soon going to be your girlfriend, I suppose."

"I'm nervous," Fred admitted.

"Why?" George asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Wouldn't you be if the roles were reversed?"

George nodded, conceding his point. "Probably, but you're a Weasley Twin. I've seen the way she looks at you; you've got nothing to worry about. So, let's go. I heard Umbridge was having a meeting with Dumbledore this morning so at least she won't be present to give you a detention."

Taking a deep breath, Fred slipped on his robes and grabbed his school bag before they both left their dorm room, walking out of the common room and to the great hall. When they stepped inside, it was packed full of students and professors as he knew it would be. He'd deliberately been later than usual to allow for the maximum number of witnesses to his plan. It occurred to him that what he was about to do had just as much chance of backfiring than it did helping him, but he had to take the chance.

His eyes immediately fell to Hermione, sitting at the Gryffindor table with her head being propped up against her hand and her eyes staring down at the bowl of porridge in front of her as she absentmindedly stirred it with a spoon. He'd never seen her have porridge for breakfast before so he was unsure of how she was feeling, which just made him all the more nervous.

"Go get her, Freddie," George said, clapping him on the shoulder and taking his bag from him as he took a seat at the table.

Taking a deep breath, Fred started down the great hall and being more than aware of the eyes that followed him as he headed for the head's table.

"Mr. Weasley?" McGonagall questioned, eyeing him suspiciously when he came to a stop in front of her.

"I'm really sorry, Professor. I've no doubt you're going to give me a detention for what I'm about to do, but I would really appreciate it if you did so after I've gotten this off my chest," Fred spoke, and before she could respond, Fred hoisted himself up onto the table, standing in the centre of it and turning to face everyone.

His nerves only doubled seeing everyone staring at him and the hall fell silent, there being no need to get everyone's attention as he'd done so the moment he'd climbed atop the table.

"Mr. Weasley!" McGonagall exclaimed unhappily but he ignored her.

"Right," Fred cleared his throat and did his best not to fidget. His eyes strayed to George and he gave him an encouraging thumbs-up, before he searched for Hermione, instantly getting locked in her wide-eyed gaze. "It's come to my attention there's been a few rumours going around and I'd like to address them. First of all, I have never had a relationship or been involved with Claire Foy, Meredith White, Laura Geoffries or Katie Bell." Whispers broke out but he ignored them, keeping his gaze locked on Hermione's. "And lastly, I wish to make a confession."

From across the room, he saw the way Hermione's face suddenly paled, her looking as though she might pass out.

"I confess, that I, Fred Weasley, fancy the pants off Hermione Granger."

The whispers grew louder and eyes darted between them and Fred was very much aware of Hermione's growing embarrassment, her pale face flushing bright red and she glared daggers at him, her hair seeming to frizz up as her magic crackled around her. He opened his mouth and she shook her head furiously, but he had to say it. He had to make her believe him.

He turned to address the rest of the hall. "No, this is not a prank or a joke. I'm being serious," Fred said. "The truth is I've been slowly falling for her for the last year, ever since she so smugly told me that my plan to break through the age wards surrounding the Triwizard Cup would fail, even before I'd attempted it. And as always, she was right. And standing here right now in front of you all, I can safely and confidently say..." He turned to look at Hermione. "Hermione, I'm in love with you."

The great hall chorused with the noises and exclamations of surprise and students talked over each other to be heard, even the professors seemed to be shocked by his confession, whispering between themselves and their eyes darting between him and Hermione.

He saw she was ready to bolt and so he jumped down off the table and followed after her as she stood from the Gryffindor table and ran out of the great hall. It didn't take him long to catch her, reaching out and snagging her hand in his and gently tugging, pulling her to a stop. She spun around to face him, her embarrassment and anger being palpable.

He could feel he was about to be lectured and so he ducked his head down, pressing his mouth against hers and silencing her before she had even spoken. He pulled back from her, seeing her eyes being wide in surprise and the anger and embarrassment being replaced with confusion and disbelief at what he'd just done.

"I meant it, Hermione. Everything I said was the truth, I do love you and I have fancied you since last year. I'm sorry that I embarrassed you, but it was the only thing I could think of that would get your attention and force you to listen to me. Do you honestly think I would say the things I did in front of everyone if they weren't true? Do you honestly think I'd play such a cruel joke on someone? Especially you? George and I have pranked just about everyone in Gryffindor, everyone except for you; you're special, Hermione, and I could never do that to you."

She blinked at him, at a loss for words. He dropped her hand and brought his own hands up to cradle the back of her neck, his fingers getting tangled in her soft, riotous curls and his thumbs softly brushing over her jaw. He tilted her head back a little and looked down into her wide eyes.

"Please say you believe me, I don't know what else to do. Why do think I've been flirting with you for the last month? I couldn't take it anymore; I had to do something about it so I stopped holding back my feelings for you and instead embraced them."

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, pulling herself together and gathering her wits.

"I believe you," she said quietly. Fred let out a sigh of relief. "And since you've made a confession in front of not only the students but the professors, too, I feel I must make a confession, too," she spoke. He held his breath. "I love you."

Fred went lightheaded and would've fallen over if it weren't for Hermione bringing her hands up to gently clasp around his wrists, pulling him back to reality. Her eyes fluttered open.

"And I have for a while," she confessed.

"Since when?" He asked, feeling confused, elated, curious, too many emotions to pinpoint and name.

"Summer, last year. During the walk to the port key that would take us to the World Cup Final, I tripped and fell down the hill. When everyone laughed and made fun of me, you didn't. You helped me back to my feet and seeing my jacket being wet, you gave me your coat so I wouldn't be cold."

He blinked slowly; he'd completely forgotten about that, but it had happened. He remembered it. She'd been walking with Ginny a little ways behind them and to prevent herself from falling when she slipped, Ginny had grabbed onto Hermione to steady herself but in doing so had knocked Hermione off balance, causing her to slip and fall down the hill, rolling to a stop on the ground and her coat being soaked by the puddle she'd landed in. Whilst everyone had burst into laughter, he'd climbed back down the hill and helped her to her feet and seeing her coat being wet, he'd removed his own and gave it to her as he already had a jumper on beneath and didn't really need it. He supposed that had been the first kind act he'd done for her.

"After the attack at the World Cup I suffered with nightmares, and once you came downstairs in the middle of the night and seeing me sitting in front of the fire, you just sat with me in silence so I wouldn't be alone."

He'd forgotten about that, too. It had been the first time he'd seen her cry and even back then before his crush on her had developed, he'd seen her changing into a beautiful young witch.

"You were the first person in a long time to show me kindness, to not expect anything of me and to not expect anything in return. I suppose that's when my liking of you developed, but given our circumstances, I knew nothing would ever come of it, so I saw no point in acknowledging it, and then Viktor came along. And I admit, my liking of you never wavered but being with Viktor just made it easier. And then you started acting differently this year and I wasn't sure what you were doing, but you were standing up for me and taking care of me even though I didn't know I needed it. You did all those things to Ron, didn't you?"

"Yeah," he shrugged, seeing no point in denying it. "I warned him to stop upsetting you and he didn't take it seriously."

"And the Slytherins?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "You were worried they'd make fun of you for Ron's comments so I made sure they were otherwise distracted until they forgot about it."

"And, Seamus? You've seemed to have changed your attitude towards him since coming back."

"Terry Boot and McLaggen, too. They've all got a thing for you so George has been helping to run interference."

"I don't know how to respond to that," Hermione admitted.

Fred opened his mouth to respond but was soon interrupted.

"Mr. Weasley!"

Fred winced before reluctantly letting go of Hermione and taking a step back from her, putting an innocent smile on his face as McGonagall approached him.

"Good morning, Professor, I trust you enjoyed your morning entertainment," he said.

McGonagall scowled at him and came to a stop in front of him, giving his size she had to look up at him, tilting her head back.

"What was the meaning of that display?"

Fred grinned at her. "You see, Professor, that was my final plan of action as Hermione truly made me work hard for her affection." He sent a quick wink to Hermione and she blushed and looked away when McGonagall turned her eyes towards her. "I had a point to prove and it was the only way I knew she'd listen to me. So, detention with Filch at the usual place? Seven o'clock?" Fred said.

McGonagall blinked in surprise. "Do you wish for a detention?"

"Not really, I would rather spend this evening taking Hermione on our first official date, but I understand what I did was wrong and I'm ready to accept my punishment without argument," he responded.

McGonagall blinked once more, shaking her head lightly and clearing her throat. "This is my last warning, Mr. Weasley, if you show behaviour such as that again, you'll have detention for the remainder of the school year. Do I make myself clear?"

It was Fred's turn to blink in surprise, having expected a string of detentions for what he'd done. A smile pulled at his face. "Perfectly, Professor. No more confessing my love for all of Hogwarts to hear."

McGonagall's mouth twitched, surprising him.

"Very good, Mr. Weasley," she said before she turned on her heel and walked away. They both heard her muttering, "Perfectly suited," to herself.

Looking to each other in surprise, they were distracted when something rained down on them and they both looked up, seeing magical mistletoe now hanging above them. Fred turned his eyes to McGonagall's retreating back, seeing her slipping her wand back into her robe pocket and his mouth twitched at the corners. Who knew McGonagall was a sucker for love?

Turning back to Hermione, she was still looking up at the mistletoe in confusion.

"Where'd that come from?" She questioned.

"Doesn't matter," he responded.

His hands reached up to cradle the back of her neck and he tilted her head up gently, locking his gaze with hers. He lowered his head towards hers and she tilted her own a little more and stretched up on her tiptoes to meet him, making him smile. His eyes closed as their mouths touched, her soft, plump lips moulding against his own. Hermione let out a sigh and her hands reached up to tangle in his hair, pulling herself more firmly against him and he allowed one hand to fall to the small of her back, keeping her to him.

At the young age of seventeen, Fred knew he had found the witch for him.

~000~000~000~

**Eight months later...**

"Hey, George!"

Fred looked over the railing on the staircase he'd been walking up, intending to get onto the overhead balcony so he could search for Hermione. The moment he saw the shocking red hair of Ron and Ginny he knew she was there, too.

"I'm Fred, he's George," Fred said, pointing to George who was a few steps higher than him.

"How much for this?" Ron asked, holding up one of their products.

"Five galleons," both he and George answered without missing a beat.

"But I'm your brother," Ron replied with a scowl.

Fred and George looked to each other. "Ten galleons," they corrected, both chuckling as Ron glared at them.

"You should've been nicer to Hermione at school. I know you went back to treating her like rubbish as soon as I left."

"How'd you know that? You haven't seen her since you left," Ron said.

That wasn't exactly true as Fred had visited Hermione in the hospital after she'd been nearly killed by Dolohov, he hadn't left her side all night, not even when they threatened him with security, and he spent all night watching over her as she slept, plotting Dolohov's demise.

Four weeks after that, she'd been well enough to leave her house and had come to Diagon Alley where she spent the day with him and George at the shop, helping them with the stocking of the shelves and making a start on decorating the flat above, which they'd already moved into. A week after that, she'd visited once more and done much the same before they laid on the couch together and Fred read _Hogwarts, a History_ out loud to her. Two weeks after that she'd told her parents she was staying at the Burrow for the weekend, when in reality she'd stayed with him at the flat. And that weekend hadn't gone to plan with Hermione having caught the flu and Fred had been the perfect boyfriend and took care of her. He hadn't seen her since, but they'd written to each other at least three times a week when he left Hogwarts, and more frequently since the battle at the Department of Mysteries and Hermione's injuries.

"We do write to each other, Ron. She's my girlfriend and I do love and care for her, of course, I want to know all about her summer and if she's alright."

Ron pulled a face as he always did when he was reminded of him and Hermione being together. Fred wondered if he'd ever get over it.

Leaving his brother behind, he walked up the rest of the steps, looking out at the crowd below until his eyes landed on a head of riotous curls that he loved so much. A smile pulled at his mouth when he saw her by the Love Potion section and he quickly made his way down the stairs and over to her.

"Plan on stealing a wizard's heart?"

Hermione startled and whipped around to face him, bringing her hand up to her chest as if it would stop her heart from escaping and she took a calming breath. Putting the potion vial back on the display, she turned her attention back to him, a smile pulling at her face.

"Is that not what us witches are known for?" She asked.

"I've gotta say, I don't think you'd need a potion for that."

"No?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No, I've got it on good authority that you already hold the heart of another and you do so without the aid of magic and potions."

"Really?"

"Really," he nodded, a smile pulling at his mouth and she laughed at him. He reached out and pulled her into a hug and she went willingly. "Hiya, Love, how you feeling?"

"Absolutely fine," she answered, reaching up to give him a peck on the lips but after being away from her for so long it wasn't enough for him, so he shamelessly buried his hands in her hair and snogged her into a tizzy, right in the middle of the shop with customers milling around.

He pulled back from her and saw her breathing being heavy, her eyes glassy and her lips a little more red and swollen, he felt proud of himself. Looking over Hermione's shoulder, he saw the group of teenage witches staring between him and Hermione with wide eyes and their mouths hung open.

"It's results guaranteed, ladies," Fred nodded to the potion, sent them a wink and took Hermione's hand in his, dragging her through the crowd and towards the back room, pulling her behind the velvet curtain and into the corridor that held the potions lab, workroom, storage room and the staircase that led up to the flat.

"You wanna stay for a while and cuddle?" He asked her, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

She seemed to be having trouble deciding whether to laugh at him or roll her eyes, so she did both.

"Not this week," she replied.

He quickly caught onto her meaning and nodded. "Cramps? Backache?"

"Not at the moment. I'll never get used to you so willingly and openly asking me these questions, or just talking about it in general," she commented.

He shrugged his shoulders. "So, you wanna stay and cuddle," he repeated but changed the way he spoke it.

"You've a really busy shop floor out there, Fred, you can't leave George to do it all by himself."

"Fine, are you staying at The Burrow?"

"I was going to head over on Monday, spend the week with them before school starts, but my parents are going away this evening to a conference and I don't see the point of me staying at home on my own, so I was going to go home and grab everything and go to The Burrow early."

"Or you can stay here for the weekend and then go to The Burrow on Monday, we won't see each other until Christmas once you leave for school," Fred said. "We're open on Saturdays so I'll be working, but Sunday I'm all yours."

"I suppose I do like the sound of that," she said, smiling when he pulled her closer to him and settled his hands on the small of her back.

"I'll even make you breakfast in bed, pancakes and waffles."

"I'm so grateful you've got your mother's talent for cooking, I'm pants."

"I know," he said, referring to the roadkill she'd tried to feed him several weeks ago. She didn't take offence, she couldn't really. She was that bad a cook even she knew it and couldn't deny it. "I'm sure I've got some of your favourite muggle chocolate in the cupboard, too."

"You spoil me," she sighed.

"Is that a yes?"

"You knew it was the moment you mentioned cuddles," she said and he chuckled. She really did like to cuddle. He'd come to think of her like a teddy bear.

"Alright, you go home and come back around closing time and I'll have a bubble bath waiting for you."

"You're perfect," she sighed, reaching up to place a kiss to his mouth and pulling away from him, throwing a 'love you' over her shoulder and disappearing from view.

~000~000~000~

**One year later...**

Fred had known something was wrong the moment Hermione's little otter made an appearance, and so he stood waiting for her by the floo, not long after he'd just closed up the shop. He knew it was the night before they were all expected at The Burrow, as the following day they would be finalising the extraction plan for Harry, and on the evening they would be carrying it out. Hermione and Fred had already planned on staying at the flat, it being one of the last few times that would be together for Merlin knew how long, especially since Hermione hadn't been able to keep her secrets from him and so he knew of her plan to leave with Harry and Ron.

Despite not wanting her to go and him wanting to keep her safe, he knew it was something she had to do. He knew the importance her mission held and wouldn't have been able to stop her from going even if he tried to. Once they retrieved Harry, Bill and Fleur's wedding would be next on the list and after that, he knew they planned on leaving not long after, so he wanted to spend as much time as possible with her. But him receiving a Patronus hadn't been a part of the plan.

The floo roared to life and he was quick to catch Hermione when she stumbled out of the fireplace, straight into his arms and sobbing loudly. The moment she knew it was him she clung to him tightly and he held her to him.

"I did it! I took their memories!" She wailed.

This was part of the plan he knew she'd been on the fence about, having made a list of pros and cons to help her make a decision. It seemed she'd gone for the affirmative.

Lifting her into his arms, he took them straight to his bedroom, laid her down on the bed, took her shoes off and climbed on behind her, wrapping her up in his arms and holding her to him as she cried.

"When this is all over, we'll get them back. I promise," Fred whispered to her.

~000~000~000~

**The next day...**

The next day Hermione and Fred had floo'd to The Burrow, ignoring the narrowed, suspicious gaze of Mrs. Weasley that met them as they stepped into the living room together. Hermione barely left his side all day and while people noticed, they didn't care enough to broach the subject which Fred hadn't been happy about. Sometimes it seemed like he was the _only_ one to love and care for her.

When the evening came and they arrived at The Dursley's, Hermione perked up a little when she saw Harry. Just before they took the PolyJuice Potion, he pulled her to him and kissed her until they were both breathless, ignoring the disapproving stare of Moody and the disgusted looks from Harry and Ron.

"Be careful," they muttered to each other.

Before he knew it, he was back at The Burrow, in his old room and lying on his old bed, refusing to sleep as he watched George sleeping on the bed opposite him, his head bandaged and blood spots had seeped through.

He'd never been so afraid in his life. He'd almost lost his twin! And now he refused to sleep, not wanting to do so in case something happened in the night and George needed him. Fred was impossibly grateful that he had Hermione with him, her being the only thing that was keeping him sane.

He didn't have to worry that she saw him as being weak, or pathetic or ridiculous. He knew she understood and he knew she cared; she cared for him and she cared about George, getting up from the bed every fifteen minutes to check on his vitals and ensuring the potions were doing what they were supposed to be doing.

Fred had always known that Hermione was the witch for him, but her actions that night only cemented his decision to go through with his plan. After climbing back into the bed behind him, she held him all night as they both stayed awake and watched over George.

~000~000~000~

**Nine months later...**

Fred was aware of the noises around him; the cries of pain, the sounds of anguish and loss and heartbreak, the sounds of healing charms being chanted, and the sounds of singing and cheers of joy and victory. He latched onto them, hoping to distract himself from the pain.

Laying on the hard, stone ground and feeling his entire body screaming in pain, he closed his eyes and pulled thoughts of Hermione to the forefront of his mind. He'd only caught glimpses of her during the battle and from what he could remember; she'd been a beautiful avenging angel. Covered in mud and dirt and blood and sweat, no one could convince him otherwise. He'd tried his best to get to her, but his every attempt had been blocked by someone drawing him in to a duel and he was so glad Hermione had never gone easy on him when they were duelling in the D.A meetings, it helping him to become a better dueller and helping him with picking up new techniques and tricks to use against others.

His final attempt to get to her had been the worst, and he'd been so lucky, too. His life had flashed before his eyes and he'd been terrified of what he'd seen. He'd come so close to death he wasn't sure how to cope, but he knew that once he had Hermione back in his arms and safe, he'd be alright.

When the explosion had rung out, the spells that had collided had thrown him off in the opposite direction, pushing him away from the falling wall and preventing him from being crushed to death, but he'd still slammed against the opposite wall so hard that now he could barely move for the pain. Luckily, Percy had been alright, too, his injuries not being as severe and allowing him to get back into the fight. The two Death Eaters they'd been up against hadn't been so lucky and had both died instantly.

Hearing the cheers brought him some comfort, knowing that the battle had been won and the war was over. But where was Hermione? Was she safe? Injured? Merlin, no, she wasn't dead. He couldn't and wouldn't believe that.

Sudden sobs drew him from his thoughts and he felt the presence of several others, even with his eyes closed he knew it to be his family and the sobs were that of his mother's. Rolling his eyes beneath his closed eyelids, and thanking Merlin that the Pain Relief was slowly starting to kick in, he opened his mouth to talk.

"Hold off on the funeral arrangements, I'm not dead yet," he muttered.

"FRED!"

"Ow, I'm already in pain, I don't need a headache, too," he replied. "Mum, please stop crying, I'm fine, well you know, except for the fact I'm not fine, but still, I'm fine."

"That's my Freddie," he heard George say, feeling his hand come up to gently press against his shoulder.

"FRED!"

He'd know that voice anywhere.

"I know you've just discovered I'm still alive, but would you mind giving me a moment with my beautiful girlfriend? I haven't seen her in almost a year."

He heard his mother mutter about 'priorities' before he heard their footsteps moving away from him and he felt Hermione kneel down beside him, her hand hovering over his face, unsure if touching him would hurt him. Forcing himself to open his eyes, he blinked several times trying to get used to the light he was exposed to and his vision soon cleared, revealing Hermione looking down at him, tears falling down her dirt and blood smudged face.

"I'm alright, Love," he said, giving her a weak smile. "Nothing a kiss won't fix."

Giving a laugh-cry Hermione lowered her head and pressed a gentle kiss to his mouth, then one to his nose, one on his forehead and one on each of his cheeks, pulling back from him and her hand gently wrapping around his.

"See, I'm all better now, your kisses have healing properties."

"Liar," she replied, lifting her other hand and brushing his hair back from his face. He turned his head, leaning in to her touch and despite the pain it caused, he didn't regret it.

"I was so worried about you," Hermione said quietly.

"I was perfectly safe at the old hag's cottage," he replied and Hermione snorted at him. "You're the one that was running around, attracting trouble and danger everywhere you went. You just can't help yourself can you?"

"Afraid not, do you still love me?"

"Danger and trouble are my middles names,"

She chuckled. "And here I thought it was Gideon."

"I feel wounded, you don't know me as well as I thought you did. Maybe I should break up with you."

"Oh?"

"What the hell, we both know I wouldn't last five minutes without you," Fred said. "I have something for you; it's in my left robe pocket."

Frowning slightly, Hermione leaned over and dug into his pocket and sure enough, there was something there. Pulling it out and holding it in her palm, she eyed the small velvet box in front of her.

"Open it," Fred instructed.

She opened the box, her eyes landing on the ring that sat in the centre. It was simple, a white gold band that sat a single sapphire, her favourite gemstone. Her eyes flew to him.

"I've a confession," Fred said, keeping his gaze locked with hers and seeing that tears were filling her eyes once more. "I bought that your sixth year. I'd intended on asking you at Bill's wedding but never had the chance. I've carried it with me every day since, hoping and waiting for the day you finally came back to me."

A tear fell from her eye. "I've a confession, before leaving I stole several of your shirts." A snort fell from him; he knew he hadn't lost them. "I wore one to bed every night and imagined you were with me, keeping me safe and protecting me. I've known since the day you dropped out of Hogwarts that you were the one for me and that I wanted to someday marry you," she said, her tears falling more freely.

He ignored the pain and smiled at her, doing his best to give her hand a gentle squeeze.

"So, Miss. Granger, the witch I love more than anything else in the world, will you marry me?"

She wiped away her tears and a smile pulled at her mouth. "I suppose so, seeing as you're the wizard I love more than anything else in the world," she answered, lowering her head to press a gentle kiss to his mouth.

"We marry as soon as I'm all healed, agreed? I don't want to not be your husband any longer than necessary. If you choose to come back to school to graduate once it's been repaired, I'll support you, but you'll be coming back a married woman. If you choose to go straight into employment and not bother with graduating, you'll do that as a married woman, too."

"Agreed," she nodded, pressing another kiss to his mouth. "I'm not coming back," she told him. "I can't, after everything that's happened here I can't face it, and I can't bear to be separated from you for such a long time as my being at school. Not again. Once The Ministry's back on its feet, I'll take my NEWTs there and then decide what I want to do in regards to a career. In the meantime, I'm going to focus on getting you better, getting married and I'll help with the shop."

"You really are perfect," Fred said.

"You're the only one that thinks so," Hermione replied, pulling back long enough to pluck the ring from the box and slipping it onto her ring finger, smiling when it fit perfectly.

"Alright, you've had long enough, stop hogging him," George said, coming up beside them and he was followed by the rest of The Weasley Clan.

"Hermione, do you want to tell them?" Fred said.

Hermione smiled and looked towards her soon to be official family, all of them looking at her expectantly.

"We're getting married," she said, a smile on her face and lifting her hand to show them her ring.

"Married!" They chorused in surprise.

"Married," Fred confirmed.

"And as soon as Fred's all healed, too."

"Are you pregnant?" Mrs. Weasley asked with narrowed eyes.

Hermione had to stop herself from rolling her eyes, Fred didn't bother. "Obviously not, we've been apart for nine months, if I were I would've already had the baby by now. Unless you think I've cheated, in which case, who was it with? Harry or Ron?"

Mrs. Weasley opened her mouth and closed it again. "Married, right," she nodded. "We'll start planning as soon as we get home."

~000~000~000~

**Eight years later...**

Weasley's Wizards Wheezes was as loud, crowded and chaotic as ever, just the way Fred and George Weasley liked it. Hermione didn't understand how they could hear themselves think with all the noise. No, she much preferred the quietness of her office at the Ministry of Magic.

Standing up on her tiptoes she did her best to find her targets, but as she'd predicted she was unsuccessful. Sighing to herself, she moved closer to the counter and came up beside Verity, an amused smile pulling at the older witch's face as she recognised what Hermione was about to do, after all, she saw it happen at least once a week and had for several years now.

Using the little stool by the side of the counter, Hermione climbed up on top of the surface so she was able to see over the heads of the crowd of shoppers. Lifting her wand above her head, Hermione shot off a series of red sparks, gaining the attention of the shoppers, all of them quieting down and coming to a standstill as they turned to face her.

"Hi, I'm sorry to interrupt your shopping, but I was wondering if you might be able to help me. I don't suppose any of you have seen two little boys, have you? Dark red hair, turquoise coloured eyes and about this big," she said, holding her hand up to her hip.

"Right here!" Several shoppers called out, holding their hands up so Hermione could see their positioning, and with this, she was able to send Levitation Charms in their direction.

Loud laughter filled the entire shop as two little boys were lifted from the ground and levitated over towards her, them being gently lowered onto the counter on either side of her. Hermione didn't bother giving them disapproving looks; they did this at least once a week.

"Thank you, and how about a little girl? Brown curly hair, also has turquoise coloured eyes and is about this big," she said, holding her hand not too far above her knee.

"Right here!" Several shoppers called once more, raising their hands.

Hermione cast yet another Levitation Charm and the shop filled with squeals and giggles as the little girl bobbed gently in the air as she was levitated over to Hermione. She plucked her out of the air and sat her on her hip.

"Hello, Love,"

Hermione looked down, seeing George giving her an amused grin and lifting both his hands to get a high-five from his nephews for pulling a prank on Hermione. If it was the same prank every week, he didn't care; he was still proud.

"Daddy!" The toddler squealed excitedly, reaching out for George with her hands.

"That's not your, Daddy, Sweetheart. That's Uncle George," Hermione explained, receiving an unhappy glance from the little girl. She turned back to the crowd, all of them still silent as she was still on top of the counter.

"Thank you for your help, and one last thing before I let you get back to your browsing. Has anyone seen the father of these little monsters? Shocking bright red hair, has two ears, about this big," she held her hand above her head to show he was quite a bit taller than her. "And is the most handsome Weasley Twin," she added.

"Oi!" George called, and at the same time as a voice shouted. "Right here!"

Hermione looked towards the voice, seeing her husband of eight years stood on the overhead balcony and grinning down at her, laughter erupting from the crowd before they went back to their shopping.

George and Verity helped down her boys and then helped her down from the counter, too, before she stepped out into the back room where Fred met them away from the crowd.

"Hey, Love, what are you doing back so early?" Fred asked his beautiful wife, leaning over to kiss her and laughing when his daughter soon pushed Hermione away from him, being jealous and also wanting a kiss.

Taking his little girl from Hermione, he pressed a kiss to her cheek and laughed when she hugged him tightly. She certainly was a daddy's little girl. At only three years old, Annie Weasley was proving to have her mother's stubbornness and her love for books. And she had soon learned how to wrap every male in the family around her little finger, more so himself and George. She was the spitting double of her mother, having her mahogany coloured riotous curls, her little button nose and heart-shaped face, but she had his eyes. Annie was the apple of his eye and he knew she was going to grow to be beautiful and there was nothing more he was dreading than the day boys took an interest in her.

Feeling a tugging at his robes, he looked down at his sons, twin boys being identical in every way. The twins were older than Annie, having not long since turned six years old, and they had long since shown they had the mischief gene. Just like himself and George, his twin boys, AJ and Chester, were proving to be little pranksters and all without the help, too. Sure, they knew what he did for a living and spent most of their time wandering about the shop when Hermione was at work having gone part-time as she wanted to spend more time with her family, but they were coming up with their own pranks all without Fred and George's influence. If Annie looked like her mother, then the twins certainly looked like their father. Whilst their hair was a darker shade of red than Fred's, they had his turquoise eyes, nose, mouth shape and cheekbones, too.

"I thought I'd come home early to celebrate," Hermione replied.

"Did you get another law overturned?" Fred asked, a proud look entering his eyes as it always did when Hermione informed him of all her hard work and effort having finally paid off each time she had outdated legislation abolished.

"Yes, but that's not what we're celebrating."

Fred raised an eyebrow when her face pulled into a wide smile and from her robe pocket she pulled out a carton of strawberries, her favourite muggle chocolate bar and a small carton of caramel fudge ice cream.

Fred blinked slowly, eyeing the contents in her hands closely before realisation hit him. They were foods she'd craved with her previous pregnancies. He lifted his eyes to her in surprise and she nodded.

"I've been feeling off for a couple of weeks now, and I cast the charm at work. I'm nine weeks along."

"You're pregnant?"

"I'm pregnant."

"Merlin!" Fred exclaimed, putting his little girl back on her feet and pulling Hermione into a tight hug, burying his face against her neck and peppering her skin with little kisses, making her laugh.

"I love you so much," Fred muttered.

"I love you, too," Hermione replied. He pulled away from Hermione to give her a kiss and they both turned to their children, intending to tell them the news, only one was missing.

"AJ, Chester, where's your sister?" Hermione asked them, her hands coming up to her hips.

They were smart enough to answer.

"She ran off," they both replied.

"Oh, for Merlin's Sake, she's definitely yours," Hermione told Fred before she stormed out of the back room.

He followed after her, making sure to take both of his sons' hands so they couldn't run off, too. When he entered onto the shop floor, it was to see Hermione stood on the counter and talking to the silent crowd.

"Sorry to bother you all again, but have you seen the little devil child that is my daughter? I'm sure you remember, brunette, turquoise eyes, this big," she gestured above her knee.

A smile pulled at Fred's mouth.

The best thing he'd ever done in his life was make a confession to the whole of Hogwarts.


	2. Outtakes and Bonus Scenes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Page Count: 38

"So, are you ready to face the music?" Hermione asked, pulling back from him with a blush to her cheeks. He was unable to keep the smile off his face and he didn't release her from his hold.

"In a minute," he muttered, lowering his mouth back down to hers. After being unable to touch her in this manner for so long and he was now allowed to, he couldn't resist from doing so.

She laughed as she pulled her mouth away from his, far too soon for his liking. "We have to get back to the hall, breakfast will be over soon and I know what you Weasleys are like when you skip meals. If you're going to be on top form ready to pull the prank I know you've been planning, you need to eat."

"How'd you know we were planning a prank for today?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

She smiled up at him and shrugged her shoulders. "I know you. You tend to be quieter than usual when you're preparing to carry out a prank, and I saw George chose tea over his usual orange juice, so he needed the caffeine."

"You don't stop surprising me," he muttered, reaching up to brush her hair back from her face.

She leaned into his touch before squirming free of his hold and walking off down the corridor. Fred was quick on her heels, falling into step beside her and his hand reached out to clasp around hers, a smile pulling at his mouth when she didn't pull back from him or complain, instead she gave his hand a squeeze. As they approached the doors to the great hall, he felt her lean into him a little more and he knew she was nervous about the reaction that was waiting for them.

He heard her take a breath and she kept her head held high and her eyes remained focused as they stepped into the hall, the chatter quieting down as everyone stared at them. Seeing as Hermione was determined to ignore it, he did so, too, his eyes locking with George's.

His twin raised a questioning eyebrow and his eyes darted down to his hand clasped around Hermione's before moving back to his gaze. Fred gave a subtle nod and his mouth pulled into a smile and in response, George grinned and gave him a thumbs up, looking proud.

Hermione tried to remove her hand from his as she made to retake her seat opposite Harry and Ron, but he refused to let go and instead climbed onto the bench beside her. It wasn't odd to see them eating breakfast together giving how much time he'd spent around her the last few weeks, but now it was clear everything was different. Hermione leaned against him slightly and he didn't let go of her hand as it rested on the bench in-between them.

Hermione reached for her bowl of porridge and pushed it away from her before selecting a couple of slices of toast and the jam, a smile pulling at his mouth knowing it meant she was in a good mood. Reluctantly he released her hand so she could smother her toast with the strawberry jam and he reached for the sausages and eggs, placing two of each on the plate that appeared before him.

They went about their tasks silently and seeing Hermione reaching for the orange juice, he lifted the jug and poured her a glass and did the same for himself, receiving a smile in thanks from her. The chatter picked back up and he felt the stares leaving him, the population having quickly gotten over what they'd just witnessed, at least for now. He didn't doubt he'd be running into Katie at some point and would have to deal with it. Fred was unsure if Hermione was a jealous person or not, but he knew Katie was and he didn't want her trying to harm or upset Hermione, knowing she could handle herself and Katie would likely end up injured or hexed.

"What the bloody hell's going on?" Ron grouched, being the first to speak in the group of people that surrounded them.

He looked up at him, seeing Harry, Dean, Neville and Ginny watching them silently whilst Seamus had a scowl on his face.

"Don't start, Ronald," Hermione said, picking up her orange juice and taking a sip from it before putting it back down on the table. "The relationships in my life are none of your business and you have no say in what I can and can't do."

"Relationship?" He stuttered, his face slowly turning red and he gripped the fork in his hand tightly.

"She's my girlfriend, keep up," Fred chirped, being far too happy to have his morning ruined by his little brother, no matter what he said or how he behaved. He was on cloud nine and nothing could bring him down.

"Girlfriend?" He spluttered, his voice rising slightly.

"That's what he said Ronnie, clean your ears out," his twin spoke, coming up behind Ron, smacking him over the back of the head and pushing himself in-between Harry and Ron, sitting directly opposite Hermione. "Hey, Hermione," he grinned.

"What do you want now?" She asked, giving him a knowing look and Fred snorted. She wasn't kidding, she really did know them.

"Nothing," George responded, picking up a slice of toast and nibbling on the end of it. "I just wanted to congratulate you, I don't know how but you managed to turn my twin into a right sappy sod. He's been a nervous wreck all morning, he even brushed his hair today, can't remember the last time he did that."

Fred scowled at his twin and Hermione laughed. Fred knew he should probably take offence that she was laughing at his expense, but it wasn't often she laughed and when she did, it was as if all the stress and pressure she was under just disappeared and she was carefree. Hearing her laugh brought him peace.

"So, now that he's finally proven himself worthy of your brilliant mind..."

"And there it is," she cut him off, sounding amused.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he replied innocently.

"If you need my help then I'll do my best to help you, but only when I'm not currently busy."

A smile pulled at his twin's face and Fred snorted, well, he and George weren't known for being subtle.

"You're my favourite non-related witch," he said, giving her a quick wink before reaching over to steal a sausage from Ron's plate and standing from the bench, returning to sitting beside Lee a little ways down the table.

"I'm confused," Harry said, his eyes narrowed and darting between him and Hermione.

"About? She's my girlfriend, it's as simple as that," Fred spoke. "Well, she will be once I've officially taken her on a date, that is."

From the corner of his eye, he saw Hermione wiping her hands on a napkin and pushing her empty plate away from her. Knowing she'd want to leave to get to her first class of the day, he pushed his own plate away from him despite not having finished but he wasn't as hungry as usual, given the nervous wreck he'd been that morning and he'd lost his appetite.

He stood from the bench and whilst Hermione busied herself looking through her bag, double checking she had everything she needed, he quickly headed for George to grab his own bag.

"So, you got the witch," George said. "I don't know if I should be proud or surprised, not that you won her over, of course, I knew you would, but that she didn't hex you for the stunt you pulled."

Fred snorted and took his bag from George, slipping it on his shoulder. "There's still time," he replied. "I'll see you later," he said, turning and walking away, hearing Lee's voice mutter to George about 'how strange it was he'd been crushing on Granger and he'd never known.'

Shaking his head, he stopped beside Hermione. "You ready, I'll walk you to class?"

"Yes," she said, standing from the bench and hooking her bag over her shoulder, but he soon took it off her and placed it on his own.

She reached for a clean napkin as well as a blueberry muffin and wrapped it up, holding it out to him. He raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"You haven't eaten much and I guarantee you'll be hungry within an hour or two."

Smiling down at her, he took the muffin in one hand and slipped the other around hers, walking out of the great hall and through the doors, feeling the eyes that followed them.

"Ron was surprisingly calm," she commented as they journeyed down the halls.

"The shock I think, well, that and George was able to convince Dobby to slip a Calming Draught into Ron's tea this morning, just in case."

She shook her head at him. "So, this date?"

He grinned down at her. "Don't you worry, I have it all planned out."

"There's not much we can do here, Fred," she replied.

"That's where you're wrong, there's plenty to do. You just have to know the right people."

"Meaning?"

"I can't give away all of my secrets," he said. "I'll tell you more later."

"Alright, and be careful today. Umbridge is dangerous and if she catches you she won't hesitate to punish you. She's already proven to not give a toss about the child protection laws."

"We'll be fine,"

"You better be, or you'll find yourself getting another snowball to the face."

~000~000~000~

"Hermione, I'm fine,"

"If you're fine then you won't mind me looking at it," she said, staring down at him with her hands on her hips.

He was sat on a couch in the Room of Requirements, Hermione having requested a room similar to the Gryffindor common room with the comfortable furniture and large fireplace with dancing flames giving off heat.

Fred sighed before holding out his hand, begrudgingly admitting that it did hurt quite a bit but he didn't regret his actions. Malfoy had more than deserved the punch he'd given him. She gently held his hand in hers, muttering beneath her breath and carefully probing at his knuckles and he held back a wince.

"I don't think anything's broken and there isn't any swelling either but you should probably put an ice pack on it, just to be sure," she said, and an ice pack appeared on the couch beside him due to the room responding to Hermione's wish. She reached for it and pressed it against his knuckles, him startling at the coldness of it.

"You shouldn't have done that, Fred," she said.

"He deserved it, not only did he insult mum, but you, too. There's a lot of things I can let go, but that's not one of them."

"But it wasn't worth it, you got kicked off the team and you have detention. I didn't want you anyone near Umbridge, once you're on her radar that's it. I don't want you getting hurt."

"I'm a big wizard, Hermione. I knew the risks before I took action and despite having detention and no longer being on the team, I don't regret it. I'm a little bummed I can't play a match again, but it just means I have more time to spend with you and to work on getting the shop set up."

He took the ice pack from her and dropped it to the ground before tugging her onto his lap and wrapping his arms around her so she couldn't get up. He rested his chin against her shoulder and her hands came up to hold onto his forearms.

"No matter the consequences, nothing will stop me from defending you against arseholes like Malfoy. You are worth every detention and every ache and pain that I may suffer. I know you can take care of yourself, but I _like_ taking care of you."

"I don't deserve you," she sighed, leaning back against him and her fingers tracing soothing patterns against his arm.

" _I_ don't deserve _you_ ," he echoed.

~000~000~000~

This was the worst Christmas of his life, Fred had decided. Not only had he been woken up in the middle of the night by Professor McGonagall, telling him that his father had been attacked whilst on Order business, but he'd been forced to leave Hermione behind and he hadn't even had time to leave her a note, explaining what had happened and that he'd see her soon.

He'd never felt so worried for his father, knowing that he was lying in a hospital bed and being without his family. What made it worse, they hadn't been allowed to visit him, their mother deeming it too dangerous given the circumstances, but not only that, she didn't _want_ them to see him, not the way he currently was.

He supposed he could understand, growing up his father had always been a role model for him. Despite their family not having much in the way of money and possessions, it had never bothered his father and he worked hard to bring home what he could and to provide for his family. His father was always cheery and strong and kind, and his mother didn't want to destroy that image of him. She didn't want them to see him in his weakened and injured state. And although he did understand, that didn't mean he liked it.

He did have his siblings with him, but it didn't make much difference. Harry had locked himself away in his room and refused to come out, Ginny barely left their mother's side and Ron did nothing but stomp about the house like a bad-tempered hippogriff. And although he had George, someone who not only understood what he was going through and that felt his pain, someone that knew him inside and out, he still missed Hermione and wished she were there with him.

He hated leaving her behind and by herself, especially with both Umbridge and Malfoy gunning for her and though he knew she was more than capable of watching out for herself, it didn't stop his worry. He and George had holed themselves up in their room at Grimmauld, doing their best to distract each other by working on product development, but when they weren't doing that, his thoughts drifted between his father and Hermione. And he'd be lying if he said he hadn't been counting down the days until she was due to return for Christmas.

A knock on the door startled him out of his musings and he lifted his head from his arms to look up at it, wondering who was on the other side. He knew it wasn't George, not only would he not have bothered knocking as it was his room, too, but he'd only left five minutes before to take a shower. He also knew it wasn't Harry as he hadn't left his room and Ron wouldn't have bothered knocking either as he didn't have any manners, which just left his mother or his sister.

"It's open," Fred said tiredly, before burying his face back against his folded arms, as he laid on his stomach on his bed.

He heard the door creak open and out of the two voices he was expecting, it was neither, but he'd never been more grateful.

"Hey, Stranger,"

Fred slowly lifted his head, blinking several times just to make sure he wasn't imagining things and that, yes, Hermione really was standing in his doorway. He hadn't been expecting her until tomorrow evening.

She smiled at him softly and he rose to his feet, striding across the room until his arms wrapped around her and he held her to him tightly, his face burying against her shoulder and his eyes closing as her arms hooked around his neck and a hand lightly scratched at the back of his neck.

"I'm sorry about your father," she said softly. "But I have never met a man more determined to love and care for his family, which is how I know he'll get through this. Just be patient and you'll see that I'm right."

"You always are," he muttered. "I missed you, and I'm sorry I left."

"Don't be, I understand why you had to leave. McGonagall pulled me aside after breakfast and explained everything to me. I wanted to write to you but she advised against it, Umbridge is having our mail screened. I missed you, too. How are you feeling?"

He sighed, "Not too bad I suppose, just worried, but mostly tired. I haven't been sleeping."

"That's understandable. Do you want to lay down for a nap?"

"Yes, but not yet, I just want to hold you," he said, reluctantly removing his arms from around her and pulling back, taking her hand in his hand pulling her over to his bed.

She climbed on beside him and moved until her head pressed against his chest and he wrapped his arms around her, keeping her to him.

"What are you doing here? I wasn't expecting you until tomorrow at the earliest."

"McGonagall didn't want to risk putting me on a train by myself should someone try to harm me or abduct me from the station, so she snuck me out of the castle after dinner, apparated me to a safe house, where we floo'd to The Leaky Cauldron and we got a taxi here. She dropped me off and went straight back to Hogwarts. At the moment, I think you're the only one that knows I'm here, I didn't see anyone else on my way up."

"George's in the shower, Harry's locked himself away, Ron's probably stuffing his face in the kitchen and Ginny's likely with mum in the living room. Sirius, the last I saw he was in his study steadily getting drunk."

"That doesn't surprise me," she said. "If you don't want to nap, I can read aloud."

"What do you have with you?"

" _Hogwarts, A History_ ,"

"Of course you do, silly me for asking," he said and she laughed at him before removing the shrunken down trunk from her pocket.

He reached for his wand and resized it for her, as well as summoning the large book. With a Levitation Charm, it hovered in front of Hermione so she didn't have to hold it, and she read aloud to him, her voice making him feel peaceful and sleepy.

He'd been on the verge of dozing off when he was startled awake.

"What in the name of Merlin is going on here!"

Fred lifted his head to see his mother standing by the foot of his bed, her hand on her hips, her cheeks flushed red and her eyes narrowed dangerously.

"I _was_ napping until you woke me, Mum," he grumbled, dropping his head back onto his pillow and tilting his head until his nose brushed Hermione's forehead. "You mind leaving us?"

She spluttered, her face getting redder by the minute.

"Hey, Mrs. Weasley," Hermione greeted with a small smile.

She pushed herself up onto her elbow and away from him and he reached out to pull her back down against him but she batted his hands away and laughed at him. Sighing, he pushed himself up onto his own elbows, the book slowly lowering onto the mattress until it was no longer obstructing his view of his very angry mother.

"Is there something you wanted, Mum?" He asked, feeling exhaustion beginning to sink in. "Only, I really am tired and would like a nap."

"What is going on here?" She asked, her voice rising and it drew the attention of both Ron and Ginny, his younger siblings stepping into the doorway to watch the scene unfold.

"I told you, I was napping," he replied.

"Hermione?" She questioned, turning her narrowed gaze towards his girlfriend and he had to give her credit, she didn't fold under her stare like most people he knew.

"As Fred said, I was reading to him until he fell asleep," she answered.

"Why?"

"He was tired,"

"Why?"

"He hasn't been sleeping, which is understandable," Hermione frowned.

"Why are _you_ reading to him? What are you doing in his room? When did you get here?"

"About twenty minutes ago, McGonagall snuck me out of the castle for my safety and dropped me off. I didn't see anyone on my way up and I knew where Fred would be. I'm reading to him because he likes it when I do it, it calms him."

"They're together," Ginny piped up from the doorway.

"Excuse me?" His mother spluttered.

"She's my girlfriend," Fred clarified.

His mother frowned. "How long?"

Fred shrugged. "Nearing two months, and she made me work for it, too, but she was worth it."

"But... Ronald..." She muttered, looking back at Ron and he stuck his hands in his pockets, slumping his shoulders and looking down to the ground.

Fred rolled his eyes at his little brother. Since he and Hermione had been in a relationship, Fred had come to understand that Ron _did_ still have a little bit of a thing for Hermione, but there was nothing he could do about it. He'd never wanted to hurt Ron but he'd lost his chance with Hermione and Fred knew she was happier with him than she could ever possibly be with Ron. He was too mean to her, too insensitive and too stubborn. He'd hurt her one too many times. And he couldn't keep up with her wit and intelligence, not in the way he could.

Of course, that meant Ron tended to be more of an arsehole when he was around and given that he and Hermione were together, that was more often than not, but Fred wasn't backing down. Sooner or later Ron would get over it.

"No, nothing would've ever happened between us, Mum," Ron mumbled.

"I thought you'd already know," Hermione said, looking sheepish. "I know the twins don't write home that often, Ron either, but I'd have thought Ginny would've mentioned it."

"Not my news to tell, Hermione," his sister responded.

His mother shook her head, apparently pushing aside the news for the time being and narrowing her eyes once more, looking at them suspiciously. Fred knew what the next words out of her mouth would be and he didn't want her embarrassing Hermione or himself for that matter. There weren't many things that could embarrass him, but unfortunately, his mother was definitely one of them, especially with her traditional views.

"There's nothing for you to be suspicious of, Mum. I love her," he said, feeling Hermione shifting closer to him and his mother's eyes widened, knowing that he didn't say those words lightly and it wasn't often he said them at all. "I'm just having a cuddle with my girlfriend whilst she reads to me, that's it."

Hermione's face suddenly flushed bright red, having caught onto the intentions of his words.

"But let's be honest, even if we were at that point in our relationship where we thought about having sex..." Hermione let out a little squeal and buried her face in her hands in embarrassment, "Which we're not," he clarified. "There isn't actually anything you can do to stop us. I mean, this isn't your house, but Sirius' and I'm of legal age, and technically Hermione is to, what with that whole time turner fiasco."

His mother looked far from pleased and Hermione refused to remove her face from her hands, but he had to say it. He needed his mother to know that she had no say in his relationship with Hermione and that he wouldn't tolerate her prying or her insinuations.

"Why does mum look about ready to fetch the wooden spoon?" His twin asked, walking into the room and dressed for bed, tussling his damp hair. "Oh, hey Hermione, when you'd get here?" He asked, walking over to Fred's bed and dropping down on the other side of Hermione. "Why are you blushing? Oh hell, I missed it all, didn't I? Now I feel cheated," he scowled.

~000~000~000~

This had been one of the best Christmases of his life, Fred decided. Despite it being made to feel joyless and depressing, it hadn't been. The moment Hermione had arrived at Grimmauld things had started picking up. He no longer had to worry about her safety as he knew her to be nearby and once he and George had decided they'd worked enough on their product development for the day, he'd head straight to the library where he knew Hermione would be hiding away and he'd spend the rest of the day cuddled up with her on the couch, listening to her reading aloud or napping.

More often than not they had to sneak around and hide away if they wanted anything more than a kiss to the cheek or a quick peck on the lips, especially since his mother had taken to watching them and refused to allow him to shut his bedroom door if he and Hermione were alone in there together.

A few days after Hermione had arrived, his mother had finally let them visit his father and under the guard of Order members, they'd been escorted to the hospital. He'd been in a particularly good mood that day and hadn't been able to stop touching Hermione once he returned to Grimmauld. Christmas morning he woke not only to the sound of Sirius singing loudly, but to the smell of breakfast wafting through the house and he and George had quickly made their way downstairs, getting the surprise of their lives when they saw their father sitting at the table in a wheelchair and with several bandages covering his legs, head and arms.

Since then, Grimmauld had been filled with laughter and joy and even Harry had pulled his head out of his arse and gotten over blaming himself for his father getting hurt.

On New Year's Eve, everyone sat in the living room, laughing and drinking after eating the feast his mother had prepared and as the countdown for New Years started and the adults were tipsy, he and Hermione had been able to sneak away, hiding out in the pantry.

Hermione was currently pressed up against the wall, his body pressed against hers and caging her in, her mouth claimed by his and her hands raking through his hair and wandering over his shoulders and down his chest, whilst his own trailed her sides, brushed the curves of her breasts and had a cheeky squeeze of her arse.

The need for oxygen became too much and despite not wanting to pull back from her he had to. She made a noise of disapproval and he took a deep breath to calm himself, not wanting to get too carried away and risk damaging his relationship with Hermione by trying to push her too far. He buried his head against her shoulder and her arms slipped up to wrap around his neck, her hands burying in his hair and running through it, her nails scratching at his scalp gently.

"What was that?" He asked, knowing she'd muttered something but he hadn't heard her properly, the sound of the fireworks going off outside marking the start of a new year. For him, it meant a new year with Hermione by his side.

"I'm ready,"

"For what?" He asked confused and pulling his head back to look down at her.

Her hair was messed up from him having his hands in it, her lips were swollen and little redder from his kisses and her cheeks tinged pink from both the heat of their bodies pressed against each other, and the glass of fire whiskey Sirius had slipped her when his mother hadn't been looking.

"Fred, I'm _ready_ ," she repeated, emphasising the word.

He frowned slightly, his eyes tracing the features of her face and the way she was looking at him before understanding suddenly hit him and his eyes widened slightly and he shook his head.

"Yes, I am,"

"Hermione, I don't want to pressure you or make you feel as though you have to do things to make me happy."

"Don't be silly, Fred. I've never felt pressured into doing anything with you and I don't feel as though I have to, but I want to. We may have been together a couple of months, but that doesn't matter to me. I love you and I want to experience those things with you."

His eyes searched her face, looking for any tell that she was lying to him and that she really did _want to_ be with him in that way and not because she felt like she _had_ to.

"Alright," he said softly. "We'll talk about this when we get back to school and if you still feel that way in a few weeks, then we'll discuss taking our relationship further."

She frowned at him and her eyes dropped down to the ground, avoiding his gaze. He brought his hand up to her chin and tilted her head so she had to look at him.

"What's wrong?" He asked. She shrugged her shoulders in response. "You're disappointed," he guessed.

"I suppose," she muttered.

"Hermione, I love you and I don't want to do anything that may risk me losing you. I just want to make sure you're confident in your decision by giving you a little time to think it over. You may change your mind, you may not, but I have to be sure you've thought this through. I don't want you to regret it."

"I could never regret anything I did with you."

He smiled down at her, bringing his hand away from her chin and brushing her hair back from her face.

"Just how much experience do you have?" He asked, needing to prepare himself and figure out the boundary lines.

She frowned in thought. "You know I'm a virgin and I know you're not."

He really didn't want an answer to the question he was about to ask, but at the same time, he needed to hear it.

"How far did you and Krum go?"

The pink tint to her cheeks darkened but she kept her gaze locked with his, refusing to be embarrassed.

"Do you really want me to answer that?"

"Yes and no," he replied, shaking his head. "Let's try this a different way, have you ever had an orgasm?"

"Yes,"

He took a deep breath. "From yourself or Krum?"

"Both,"

"Has he used his mouth on you?"

"No,"

"His hands?"

"Yes, and he's seen me shirtless," she said before he could ask. He felt a wave of jealousy wash over him before shaking it off.

"And you?"

"I didn't use my mouth on him, but I did use my hands, any more awkward questions?"

"No," he said. "I had to be sure you weren't just making a decision in the heat of the moment and I needed to know how far I can push you before I risk crossing the line."

"There are no lines or boundaries with you, I trust you. And if I'm being honest, this isn't the first time I've thought about it, I've been having these thoughts for a couple of weeks now," she spoke and he looked down at her, feeling surprised by her confession. "Which is why I'm a little disappointed you don't trust me enough to make my own decisions."

"I do trust you, Hermione; I just want to make sure this is definitely something you want."

They startled apart when the pantry door opened and a tipsy Sirius Black stood in the doorway, his mouth pulling into a smirk and his eyes darting between them.

"I was wondering where you two lovebirds had disappeared to."

"Sirius, we weren't..."

"Doing anything raunchy? I know," he said. "The pantry is an awful place to get down to business, trust me, I know from experience."

Hermione blushed bright red and Fred was amazed he hadn't done the same.

"Look, I get it, your mother's been keeping a close eye on you this last week and I reckon it's frustrating for you to be unable to spend time alone together. So, I'll keep your parents distracted for a little while. Ginny's gone to bed, Harry and Ron are playing wizard's chess, George's passed out on the couch and your mother's serenading your father. So, I'll just grab this elf wine," he said, reaching for two bottles that sat on the shelf, "And soon she'll forget about everything but wanting to go to bed."

"Thank you," Hermione said, "I owe you one."

He snorted at her. "You've kept Harry alive all these years, we're square."

Hermione smiled at him and slipped past him, stepping out of the pantry. Fred made to follow after her but Sirius stepped in front of him, his smile dropping from his face and his eyes narrowing.

"This is my one and only warning, if you lay a finger on her without her say so, I'll show you just how fucked up Azkaban made me."

Fred blinked in surprise; not only at Sirius' words, but that he even thought he was capable of harming a woman in such a way, even more so it being Hermione.

"You are aware who raised me, right? Do you honestly believe my mother would let me live if she ever thought I would hurt a witch in the way you're suggesting?"

Sirius tilted his head slightly. "Don't screw this up. That little witch is special, anyone can see that. If you lose her due to a stupid mistake you made, I guarantee someone else will be waiting to pick up the pieces."

"I'm not going to mess up, I love her and I'd die before I ever harmed her, intentionally or not," he responded, locking gazes with Sirius.

Sirius nodded slowly. "Then off you go, I reckon the little witch it waiting for you and don't disappoint her, she was looking a little _frustrated_."

"How'd you know?" Fred frowned.

He shrugged. "I know a pent up witch when I see one, and she's one of the worst I've ever seen. I reckon George will be out for the count until tomorrow lunch and so will your mother, so you don't have to worry about her sneaking out of your room in the early hours of the morning."

Fred wasn't sure how he didn't feel uncomfortable at the older wizard's insinuations, so he just slipped past him and out of the pantry, walking out of the kitchen and heading for the stairs. When he reached his room, he stepped inside and closed the door, warding it shut and silencing the room for good measure, before turning to examine Hermione.

He watched as she paced by the foot of his bed, moving back and forth slowly. He watched as she gently tugged at the hem of her pretty blue blouse and was briefly distracted by the way her jeans hugged her arse, before shaking his head. He watched as she mumbled quietly, as she blew her hair out of her face in frustration and she carried herself stiffly.

He blinked in surprise; Sirius was right, Hermione _was_ frustrated, and he actually felt guilty that he hadn't noticed it before it was pointed out to him.

Taking a step forward he said, "Hermione, you feeling alright?"

"Fine," she replied automatically and stopping in her pacing to face him, giving him a small smile.

"You're not, you're _frustrated_ ," he said. "Why didn't you say anything?"

She shrugged her shoulders and looked down at the ground. "Just as you didn't want me to feel pressured, I didn't want you to feel the same."

"Hermione, I would've helped if you'd have told me."

"This is my problem, I'll deal with it."

"How long have you felt this way?"

She shrugged again, looking down at the ground. "A while,"

Fred took a deep breath before making a decision and walking over to her, stopping in front of her.

"You're not going to be able to relax until this is taken care of," he said.

She looked up at him questioningly, a frown pulling at her face as she watched him carefully, seeming to catch onto the meaning behind his words.

"But you said..."

"I did," he nodded. "But I'd be a terrible boyfriend if I allowed you to suffer when you're clearly frustrated, so I'm willing to compromise and take our relationship to the next level, just no sex. Unless you'd prefer to take care of it yourself?"

Her face flushed but she didn't look embarrassed. "Not really," she admitted. "It often takes me a while to get to that point, but you might be able to get me there quicker."

"Then that settles it," he muttered, reaching for her blouse and tugging her forward by the hem of it, bending to claim her mouth in a kiss, his tongue slipping through her parted lips.

She brought her arms up to wrap around his neck and her hands buried in his hair, tugging at the strands. He backed her up until the back of her knees hit his bed and he lowered her down onto the mattress, laying down beside her but still hovering over her slightly.

His hands moved to her sides and before he thought to ask if she was okay with it, her hand came down to his and moved it to press against her stomach beneath her blouse, giving him a nudge in encouragement. Taking the hint, he moved his hand towards her breasts, cupping it and kneading over the fabric of her bra and she moaned into his mouth, her leg shifting to hook over his hip and bringing their bodies closer together.

Knowing she was searching for friction when she rocked her hips forward, he brought his hand down from her breast and towards the button on her jeans. Whilst he didn't want to rush this experience with her, he also knew it was getting late and he didn't want to run the risk of being caught.

George may have been passed out on the couch, but that didn't stop him from waking and even drunk or with a hangover, he knew the way Fred thought and would easily be able to remove the wards from the room to gain access.

He hesitated a little before reminding himself that she wanted him to do this for her and as much as he hated to think about it, she had been with Krum in this manner, too. If she wasn't comfortable, she wouldn't have agreed to let it happen.

He unzipped the zipper and unfastened the button and pulled back from her, her eyes opening and her mouth forming into a little pout. He chuckled at her before pressing a single kiss to her lips and sitting up, making his intentions clear. Her jeans were quite tight on her and he knew he'd struggle with movement if she were to leave them on, but he intended to have her leave her blouse and knickers on, knowing that if he saw her naked, it would all be game over for him and he'd give in to her wishes immediately. This allowed him some level of control over himself.

She lifted her hips and pushed her jeans down her hips and he pulled them off the rest of the way after removing her shoes, dropping the items of clothing onto the floor and moving to lay beside her once more.

He latched his mouth back onto hers and he let his hand wander over the fabric of her knickers, feeling the wetness of her arousal seeping through and he inhaled sharply. Her hips shifted into his touch and she moaned against his mouth and he slipped his hand below the fabric, rubbing over her centre.

She jolted forward and a gasp fell from her as he slipped his fingers between her folds, searching for the little bundle of nerves that had her hips jerking forward once he found it. He was careful when he slipped a finger into her, keeping the movement of his hand slow and steady as she pulled her mouth from his and her head fell back onto the pillow, little pants falling from her lips and a light flush settling over her skin.

"You have to show me, Hermione," he said softly.

Seeming to know what he was asking, she brought her hand down from his hair whilst the other gripped onto his shoulder tightly, and she slipped it beneath the fabric of her knickers to rest above his.

She pressed her fingers against his, urging him to apply more pressure to her nub and to move a little faster in his movements, her hips moving to rock against him. He watched her enraptured, seeing the way she bit at her lip and her body arched into his touch, the flush of her skin disappearing down beneath her blouse and her nails biting into him even through the fabric of his shirt. Her chest heaved with every breath she took as her breathing sped up and her head tipped back further, exposing her neck to him. Fred decided he could very easily die a happy man and become addicted to the sight of her like this.

He dropped his head, taking advantage of the skin she revealed to him and he latched his mouth on her neck, nipping, licking and sucking. Feeling her pressing more firmly on his hand, he understood that she wanted him to move a little faster and before doing so, he added another finger, a breathless moan falling from her mouth in response to his actions.

His length - which had long since been drawn to attention- twitched at the sound and he took a deep breath to calm himself. She dug her nails into the back of his hand, her grip on his shoulder tightened and he felt her walls beginning to flutter around his fingers. Just knowing she was close to the edge, he twisted his fingers within her, searching for that special spot.

She let out a cry and her eyes slammed shut when he felt her walls clamp down on him, trying to keep him from leaving and he shut his own eyes at the sight she made. Fred's control had never before been tested the way it was now, but he was adamant that he didn't want to push her too far.

He brought her through her orgasm and when she sagged into the mattress and a little smile pulled at her face, did he then remove his hand and bring it to settle at her hip, her hand still laying on top of his.

She opened her eyes and in the dim light of the moon and the fireworks still going off, they seemed to sparkle in her happiness. She smiled at him and her hand lifted from his shoulder and to his hair, gently raking her hands through it.

"Better?"

"Much better, thank you," she sighed, her eyes closing. "I'm surprised; it usually takes a lot longer." Fred didn't know if that was a compliment or not but he took it as one. "You want me to take care of that for you?" She asked, bringing note to the hard length that was restrained by his jeans and pressed against her thigh and he shifted away from him slightly.

"No, I'm alright."

She frowned. "Really? Viktor never turned me down."

"Of course he didn't," Fred muttered beneath his breath before shaking his head. "Really, this was all about you, I'll be fine in a little while. Are you staying?"

"Can I?" She asked, blinking in surprise. He smiled down at her and nodded, a smile of her own making an appearance. "You have a shirt I can sleep in?"

Given their size difference, anything he gave her would bury her small frame but the thought of her in his clothing did something to him, something he couldn't explain.

Standing from the bed, he walked over to his trunk and dug around inside until he found something, pulling it out with a smile on his face. He tossed it to her before removing the wards from the door and quickly heading to the bathroom, taking the quickest cold shower of his life and dressing in a t-shirt and some pyjama pants.

As he stepped back into his room and re-warded the door, his eyes fell to Hermione, seeing her stood by his bed and pulling back the blankets ready to crawl in. His eyes lit up at the sight of her wearing nothing but his Quidditch jersey burying her and her wild curls surrounding her in a halo. He felt pride and a streak of possessiveness shoot through him. He knew he was lucky that the little witch was his and he had no intentions of screwing things up or letting her go.

He walked over to the bed and climbed in beside her, them both easily finding themselves comfortable in the other's presence and being pressed against one another. Whilst this was their first time sharing a bed, it wouldn't be their first time holding each other as they slept as they often napped together on the couch in the library or in the Room of Requirements, but something about this felt different. It felt right. And Fred knew he'd get a good night's rest with his little witched tucked up against him and he didn't know if he'd manage to sleep alone again.

~000~000~000~

"We don't have to do this if you don't want to," Fred said softly and looking up at Hermione, her hair messed up, her lips red and swollen and her eyes sparkling in the dimly lit room, and he knew if he were to look in the mirror he'd probably look the same.

"I'm not going to change my mind, Fred. I love you and I want to experience this with you," she responded, her eyes locked on his and with no sign of hesitation.

It'd been a few weeks since they'd returned to school after the holidays and Fred had been adamant that Hermione take the time to really think over her decision, as he had to be sure she wasn't just doing it because she thought it would make him happy. He didn't want her to regret it, and he'd overheard horror stories from other witches in the common room about losing their virginity and he didn't want Hermione's first time to be like that.

She'd tried to nudge him into giving in, never enough to annoy him or upset him, because actually, it amused him. But he was always sure to stop things from going too far, just sticking to snogs in abandoned classrooms and the occasional grope, but never anything more despite Hermione voicing her disappointment.

"If we go through with this, it's likely to hurt you and I don't want to do that."

"I'll be fine, Fred, I'm a big witch and I trust you."

"If you want or need me to stop you have to tell me. If you feel uncomfortable or you change your mind, I need to know."

"I promise I'll tell you what I need, but I'm not going to change my mind. Now, do I have to beg you?"

Fred's eyes searched her face one last time before he pulled her further into his body and lifted his head, his mouth catching hers in a consuming kiss. Her arms snaked around his neck and her hands wound into his hair, pulling on the strands gently.

It was a Saturday night and they were in the Room of Requirements. That weekend was a Hogsmeade weekend, so he and Hermione had gone into the little village together, spending the day without the prying eyes of the school population following them wherever they went. After dinner they'd both snuck away to the Room of Requirements and with the following day being a Sunday, he knew none of their friends would notice that they were gone as they'd sleep till late and visit Hogsmeade once more, which meant they had the night and the morning to spend with each other without being interrupted.

They'd been in the Room of Requirements for about an hour and in that time, they'd cuddled on the couch and exchanged kisses which quickly turned heated, and that was how Fred found himself sitting on the couch with his shirt partially unbuttoned, and Hermione straddling his lap, wearing a jumper but having lost her jeans not long before, as she kissed him as if she would die without him.

Needing to breathe, he pulled back from her and she stared down at him pleadingly. Taking a breath, he gave in and decided to trust that she was telling him the truth. Wrapping his arms around her tighter, he shifted her on his lap and stood from the couch, her legs hooking around his waist to keep balance and he crossed the room, walking past the dancing flames in the large fireplace, and over to one of the biggest bed's he'd ever seen.

Setting her down on the edge of the mattress, she unwrapped herself from him and shuffled back to the centre of the bed, picking up the cushions and throwing them onto the ground before pulling the sheets from beneath her and moving them out of the way.

Fred watched her and kicked off his socks and shoes before climbing onto the bed, his eyes locked on hers as he crawled up her body and settled himself between her thighs, holding his weight up on his elbows.

The stared at each other silently until Hermione grew impatient and lifted her head, taking his mouth in a kiss and her hands burying in his hair. Feeling her hands coming down to his shirt and undoing the remainder of his buttons, he let his own hands begin to wander, slipping beneath her jumper to trail the soft, pale skin of her stomach and the encouraging moan she gave had him covering her breasts and kneading them over the fabric of her bra.

He pulled back from her when she tugged his shirt down his shoulders and he pulled it over his wrists and dropped it the floor, his eyes falling back to Hermione when in the time he'd taken to do that, she'd pulled her jumper over her head and dropped it to the ground, too, leaving her in only her white cotton bra and blue cotton knickers.

There was nothing sexy about it really, but that's why he loved her. She didn't feel the need to impress him, she didn't feel as though she had to dress up and wear fancy knickers to make him happy. He loved that she dressed for comfort and practicality rather than trying to impress him or others, which is why seeing her as she was now gained the same reaction as it would've if she'd been wearing lace or silk. He felt his length come to attention and strain against the confinement of his boxers and jeans.

Hermione reached up and pulled him back down to her, her mouth latching onto his and her body arching up into him when his hands wandered over her stomach and up to her breasts, cupping and massaging them over her bra. She arched her back a little more and he took the hint, slipping his hands around her back until he found the clasp of her bra and he quickly undid it, pulling the fabric away from her.

Pulling back to look down at her, her cheeks tinged pink but she otherwise showed no sign of hesitation or wanting him to stop, so he lowered his head and attached his mouth to her neck, kissing and nipping at her skin. She let out breathless little pants and her hands roamed over his back and shoulders, tracing the muscle he'd gained from years of playing Quidditch.

He slowly moved his mouth lower, kissing down her throat, over her collar bones and her breath hitched, a moan being pulled from her and her body arched up into him, her nails digging into his skin sharply when his mouth closed around her nipple and his hand came up to pay attention to the other one.

His length twitched, not only at the sound, but at the way her hips bucked up into his and she moved them, searching for friction. He moved his mouth to the other nipple and brought a hand down in-between them, smoothing it over her stomach until he reached the edge of her knickers. She made a noise of encouragement and tugged at his hair, so he slipped it beneath the fabric and brushed his fingers over her centre, inhaling a deep breath when he felt her arousal.

Slipping his fingers through her folds, he nudged at her little bundle of nerves and she jolted, a gasp falling from her. He closed his eyes tightly to try and calm himself, before carefully slipping a finger into her. She shifted beneath him, opening her legs a little wider and moving her hips against the movement of his hand so he added another finger and his thumb found her nub and he put pressure on it, her hand in his hair tugging harsher on the strands and her nails digging into his shoulder.

He knew that he was likely to hurt her no matter how careful he was, and so he focused his attention on ensuring that she would enjoy at least some of their night together. Before he knew it he felt her walls fluttering about his fingers, her breathing picked up and her head tipped back, pressing against the pillow beneath her. He pulled his mouth away from her chest and looked down at her, seeing her flushed skin, her closed eyes and her parted mouth. He twisted his fingers inside her and found the spot that made her see stars.

She clamped around his fingers, trying to pull him in further and a breathless cry fell from her lips as she tugged at his hair and her body shook lightly beneath him. He didn't once take his eyes away from her.

She sagged into the mattress beneath her and her chest heaved with every breath she took, brushing against his own. After guiding her through her orgasm, he removed his hand from between her legs and shifted until he was hovering above her, looking down at her.

Slowly her eyes opened, a glassy look having settled over them and a sleepy smile pulled at her mouth. He made to speak, but she pulled him back down to her, claiming his mouth with her own and distracting him. Her hands began to wander down his chest, tracing the ridges of muscle and his pale skin before coming to a stop at his jeans and she deftly had the zipper and button unfastened, which more than surprised him.

His hands clenched into fists and his breath hitched when her small hand wrapped around him for the first time, and without seeming to be nervous or worried, she pumped her hand over him, twisting her wrist on the way up and applying pressure that had him closing his eyes tightly and groaning into her mouth.

He pulled back from her, looking down at her with darkened eyes and she gave him a little amused smile, before he buried his face against her neck, pressing kisses to her skin as she worked him up. He knew that if he didn't stop her soon the night would be over a lot quicker than either of them wanted.

He took a breath and pushed himself up onto his elbows, reaching between them his hand circled hers and he pulled it away from him, looking down at the frown on her face.

"This will be over a lot sooner than either of us want if you keep doing that," he told her. The frown was gone from her face and a smug smile pulled at her mouth at his words. Shaking his head slightly, he locked his gaze with hers. "Are you sure you want this?"

"I've never been surer of anything in my life," she replied, her hand coming up to brush his hair back from his eyes, her nails gently scratching at his scalp.

"It'll probably hurt you," he muttered softly.

She smiled up at him. "I'm a big witch, I can take it. And it can only hurt for a little while, right? It's nothing for you to worry about. And the longer you try to stall, the more frustrated I'll become and I'll likely end up hexing you, in which case you'll be the one that's hurting."

He chuckled at her and shook his head. Pulling away from her, he kept his gaze locked on hers as his hands snaked down to her knickers and he hooked his fingers in the waistband, pulling them down her legs when she lifted her hips to help him. He threw them to the floor before quickly removing his own jeans and boxers, him knowing that she was curious but she kept her gaze firmly on his.

She reached for him, pulling him back down to her and kissing him as he settled himself between her legs. He reached to hook her leg over his hip and he trailed his fingers down her thigh, tickling her.

"I'm ready," she muttered against his mouth.

He pulled back until his lips brushed hers when he spoke. "I know it's difficult, but I need you to relax as best you can and take a deep breath. I'll go slow but if you need me to stop, tell me."

"I promise," she said, her gaze holding his.

He lowered his head, catching her mouth in a kiss to distract her as he reached between them to position himself at her entrance. He eased into her slowly and when her breath hitched he stopped before pulling back out and moving in a little further, trying to make it less painful and easier for her to adjust to him.

By the time he was about halfway in, her hand on his shoulder gripped him tightly and a gasp fell from her as she pulled her mouth from his and her teeth sunk into her bottom lip. She took a deep breath, let it out through pursed lips and opened her eyes.

"Just do it, dragging it out is going to hurt more."

"You sure?"

She nodded and took a breath, holding it in. She buried her head against his shoulder as he pulled his hips back before surging forward until he was fully sheathed within her. Another gasp fell from her lips and he didn't need her to tell him to remain still, he did so anyway. Not only to allow her to adjust to him, but so he could force himself to remain calm as the way she surrounded him tightly like warm, wet silk was almost too much to bear. His head tilted forward to bury against her neck and he placed little kisses to her skin, hoping to distract her.

"Alright, you can move," she breathed after a few minutes of silence.

Taking a breath, he pulled his hips back before moving forward slowly, him noting that her grip on his shoulder lessened with each thrust. When her body seemed to relax beneath him and her hands buried in his hair, he brought his mouth back to hers and increased the speed of his thrusts, breathless gasps being torn from her. She brought her other leg up to hook around his hip, allowing him to move further into her and he was unable to stop the groan from leaving him.

He knew that it was likely he wouldn't be able to bring her to orgasm, not this time at least, but that didn't stop him from wanting to make sure she enjoyed herself. He changed the angle of his hips and the mewl that fell from her and the way her legs tightened around him let him know she approved.

He was approaching the edge and he tried to distract himself, to hold off a little longer but if he were being honest, it'd been a while since he'd last been with a witch and even then she hadn't been as soft, or tight, or responsive as Hermione was.

Hermione pulled her mouth from him and breathed, "Just let go," against his ear, her mouth and tongue moving to his ear lobe and sucking and tugging at it gently.

His hands clenched into fists, his eyes shut tightly and his breathing sped up, all indicators that he was close. When Hermione tugged at his hair and nipped at the skin behind his ear, it was the final push he needed. He lost rhythm and his thrusts grew erratic until he found his release and he groaned against the skin of her neck. Slowing to a stop, he breathed heavily and Hermione's hands gently smoothed over his back and shoulders, helping to calm him.

Lifting his head he looked down at her, seeing her eyes having glazed over at some point; her skin flushed a light pink, her hair surrounding her in a halo of wild curls and a sleepy smile on her face as she looked up at him.

Her hand came from his shoulder and to the side of his face, her thumb tickling him as she gently swiped it over his cheekbone and he leaned into her touch, before lowering his head to kiss her, his tongue meeting hers when she parted for him.

He pulled his mouth from hers and pulled out of her, a wince falling from her mouth and he felt guilt wash over him as he moved to lay down beside her and he tugged her over to him, his arm settling around her and burying in her hair. She moved to press her head to his chest, her fingers tracing light patterns over his heart. He reached out to grip the edge of the blanket and he pulled it to cover them both, helping to fight off the chill in the room.

"You alright?"

"Perfect," she answered, sounding tired. "There's nothing for you to worry about, I'm fine. In fact, it didn't hurt as much as I thought it would, if anything it was a little uncomfortable at first but that soon disappeared. It stung a little, like a parchment cut, but I'm fine, just tired."

He sighed and brought his other arm up to wrap around her waist, holding her closer to him as his other hand played with her hair and she tilted her head to press a kiss to the underside of his jaw.

"I don't regret it, and as far as first times go, I'm sure I had the experience most witches wish for, so thank you for being so considerate of me."

"I'm always going to put you first, you're important to me. I love you."

"I love you, too," she said softly, pressing a kiss to his chest and snuggling against him. "Let me have a nap and get my energy back up, and we go again afterwards."

His eyes widened and he spluttered in surprise and her giggles sounded in the room.

~000~000~000~

Fred _hated_ Death Eaters with such a passion, he felt his magic building up in his body, his mind clouding with thoughts and ways to rid them of the world for good and his hand itching to reach for his wand so he could put it to good use.

He sat in St. Mungo's hospital beside Hermione's bed, slumped in the uncomfortable seat and his tired eyes watching as she slept soundly. He'd been there for two days now and he barely left her side, if only to use the bathroom in the private room she'd been given. The hospital staff had tried to force him to leave but after various threats from both himself and George, they'd given up and rather they just ignored his presence, going about the room as if he wasn't even there but that suited him just fine. He wasn't there to interact with them, he was there to watch over Hermione and protect her should someone try to harm her further.

He thought he'd been worried when his father had been injured but it didn't come close to what he'd felt when he'd heard news of Hermione having been involved at the battle that had taken place at The Ministry. He and George had received word that they were needed and by the time they'd arrived, the battle had already wound down and he found Hermione, crumpled on the ground and bleeding out.

He'd tried to wake her but she'd been unresponsive and not waiting for her to be seen to, he didn't stick around to help with the aftermath, instead lifting her into his arms and flooing to St. Mungo's with George on heels.

Visitors came in the form of Harry and Ron, as well as Ginny and his mother. But Harry had soon been shipped off to The Dursleys for his safety and his mother had forced his siblings to return to The Burrow, but seeing as neither he nor George no longer lived at The Burrow and they were of age, she could no longer tell them what to do. Even if she'd tried to, Fred wouldn't have listened to her.

George had stayed with him the first night but had to return to their shop as they were preparing for the launch that was happening in the coming weeks. George hadn't wanted to leave, but Fred had been able to convince him otherwise. George had returned at lunch the same day, bringing him food and helping to distract him until he left again.

Fred had barely slept, not wanting to close his eyes or be left seeming vulnerable in case someone entered the room with the intentions of harming Hermione. And in the two days, he hadn't slept, Hermione had done nothing but, not having yet woken and while it worried him and he longed to hear her voice, he knew that she wasn't in any pain.

His eyes darted down to her stomach, seeing the many bandages beneath the thin hospital gown she wore and the blood splotches that seeped through. They didn't know how she'd survived, especially since no one at the hospital was able to identify the curse she'd been struck with, but it had essentially been burning her alive from the inside out and Fred had never been more grateful of the fact Hermione was the strongest witch he knew. She was too stubborn to die.

"Mr. Weasley,"

Fred looked to the doorway, seeing Hermione's healer stepping into the room and giving him a nod of greeting. Whilst Fred didn't like the medi-witches that did the rounds and checked in on Hermione several times during the night, he had no dislike for the older wizard currently in the room. He gave Fred his space and left him alone, and despite it breaking protocol, he shared information with him, letting him know about Hermione's progress and health.

Fred nodded in greeting and the healer approached Hermione's bed, pulling his wand from his white robes and making a start on checking Hermione's vitals.

"She's doing a lot better," he spoke. "I'm a little worried the wound isn't yet healing, but I suspect she'll wake soon. If she wakes and a member of staff isn't here, make sure she doesn't move and call for assistance," he said, reaching for the clipboard that hung on the end of the bed and making a note of his findings. "I've finished my shift for the evening but someone should be by within half an hour to change her dressings."

Fred blinked tiredly and nodded before the healer left the room and his eyes moved back to his slumbering girlfriend.

A medi-witch came by not long after and she gave him a look of annoyance when he refused to leave the room to allow her to change Hermione's dressings. What did it matter if he was there or not? It's not like she was protecting her modesty, Fred had seen Hermione without clothing plenty enough times. After the medi-witch left, he settled back into his uncomfortable chair, his eyes watching Hermione and refusing to leave her sleeping form.

~000~000~000~

"Fred, where are we going? People will notice we're missing and come searching for us," Hermione said, a slight laugh leaving her as he tugged her forward by the hand.

"No they won't, they're too busy partying to notice our departure, and if they did, George will distract them, he needs an excuse to test out our new firework line anyway."

"But where are we going?"

"You'll see, we're nearly there," he replied, and deciding she wasn't moving fast enough, he came to a stop and scooped her up, putting her over his shoulder.

"Fred, put me down, I'm too heavy," she said, a laugh leaving her as her arms automatically wrapped around his waist to keep her from falling, despite knowing he wouldn't actually drop her.

"No, you're not; I've carried Quidditch gear heavier than you. And stop wriggling, I'm not putting you down," he said, bringing his hand up to swat her on the arse.

She let out a shriek of surprise and he winced when her hand repaid the favour, swatting him on the arse in retaliation. The arm that was wrapped around her thighs and holding her to him, he moved it a little higher, tugging at the hem of her dress to pull it down. Despite knowing they hadn't been followed, he didn't want to take the risk of bumping into someone that had gone for a wander, and in doing so, having Hermione's knickers and arse on display, no matter how lovely he thought it was.

"I'm starting to feel sick," Hermione called, and he heard her let out a puff of air, likely trying to blow her curls out of her face and his mouth twitched in amusement.

"We're nearly there, it's just over this hill," he said, making sure to tighten his hold on her as he approached it and then carefully climbed down, not wanting to slip.

After a few moments, he came to a stop and bent to place her back on her feet, reaching out to steady her with a chuckle as she stumbled slightly. Her hands came up to her face, brushing her curls back over her shoulder so they were no longer covering her eyes or stuck to her mouth. Her eyes locked with his before they darted off over his shoulder, a look of surprise crossing her face.

"I didn't know you had a stream on the property," she said, her mouth pulling into a smile before she stepped around him and walked to the edge, peering down at the rocks beneath the water.

He knew she was looking for any signs of life but also knew that it was too dark to see anything. The sun had set an hour ago and the stars filled the night sky, and whilst the others were back at the marquee and celebrating Bill and Fleur's wedding, he needed some time alone with Hermione.

After everything that had happened in the last few days and knowing that she was leaving soon, he wanted, he _needed_ to be alone with her, to see her happy and smiling and laughing. To see her without worry and fear and stress. They'd both been through a lot lately, him almost losing George and her losing her parents in every way but death, and whilst they'd barely left the other's side, they hadn't been together like they had in Hogwarts, back when they were carefree and sneaking off to abandoned classrooms for a snog, or hiding away in the Room of Requirement so they could sleep beside one another, and Fred missed it.

Fred watched the way Hermione kicked off her heels, wobbling slightly as she lost her balance, before she toed at the water, jumping back at the cold temperature. Whilst it was summer and a lot warmer than they were used to the weather being, there was a slight chill in the air and the water certainly wouldn't help with fighting off the cold.

Chuckling at her, he shrugged off his robes and hooked them over her shoulders, covering her pretty red dress. She looked up at him over her shoulder and smiled, reaching up to tug her hair free and Fred stepped closer, wrapping his arms around her and tugging her back into him, resting his chin on her shoulder and looking up at the sky, seeing the moon and stars shining brightly.

"It's peaceful here," Hermione said softly, not being able to hear the music from the party, despite how loud she knew it to be playing.

"I used to come here as a kid, especially when mum was mad at something George and I did," he spoke and Hermione chuckled.

"A lot then,"

He snorted at her. "I once camped out here for a full week, refusing to set foot in the house until mum gave me back my wellies."

"What?" She asked amused.

He shrugged his shoulders, "They were my favourite thing to wear, I used to sleep in them, too. Eventually, they gave way and rather than mum fixing them, she threw them out. I still haven't forgiven her." She laughed at him and tilted her head towards him when he nuzzled at her neck.

"So, why'd you bring me here?"

"I just wanted to spend some time with you, like we used to in Hogwarts before You-Know-Who made an appearance and the war officially began."

She sighed, "I miss that, too, and I think about it every day."

"We'll be that way again," he promised. "When this is all over and He's gone for good, I promise, we'll get your parents back and we won't have to worry or hideaway."

"We have to destroy him first, Fred, and sadly, I have no idea how to do that," she said quietly. "And I really don't want to leave you, we have no idea how long we'll be gone, it could be weeks, it could be months, but the thought of leaving you for even a day hurts me."

"I don't want you to go," he muttered, turning to press a kiss to her neck.

"I don't want to go either, but I have to."

"Can't I convince you to stay? We could just hide away from it all whilst we wait for it to be over. Just you and me, like it was in the Room of Requirements."

"I'd love nothing more," she answered honestly, "And you could very easily convince me to stay, but what I want doesn't matter. Harry needs me, if we want to win and be together, He needs to be destroyed. It's not just Harry that's counting on me, it's the Wizarding World. I can't be selfish no matter how much I want to run away with you."

He held her to him tighter, knowing she was right. He really didn't want her to go; he wanted her to be with him, by his side where he knew she was safe and cared for. If she was away from him, who would give her back rubs when she had cramps? Who would cuddle her when she was sad? Who would comfort her when her nightmares haunted her? Who would make sure she was eating and sleeping enough? Because he knew it certainly wouldn't be Harry or Ron. Of course, he knew they cared for her, but they didn't notice the things he did.

They may have been her best friends and had known her longer, but she was his girlfriend and she opened up to him in a way she hadn't anyone else. He knew her deepest, darkest secrets. He knew her inside and out. He knew her heart, soul and body. Harry and Ron didn't even know her favourite colour.

He knew he could trust them to watch her back and keep her safe, but he couldn't trust them to take care of her, not in the way he could at least. It was bad enough being away from her when she'd been at Hogwarts, where she'd been safe and protected and well fed. But now, Merlin knew where she'd end up and what she'd have to do to survive and he hated the thought of not being there for her when she needed him the most.

"When do you leave?" He muttered, closing his eyes and just revelling in the silence that surrounded him, in Hermione being in his arms and the breeze tussling her hair and the scent of her shampoo invading his nose.

"Soon, early hours tomorrow morning," she said quietly, her voice cracking slightly.

He felt his breath hitch and his hold on her tightened. He knew she'd planned to leave after the wedding, he just hadn't known it was to be so _soon_ after the wedding. He felt the ring box in the pocket of his trousers, brushing against his leg and reminding him of what he'd planned to do that night.

He didn't know when he'd next get to see her and he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he never got the chance to ask her to marry him. With his ring on her finger, it would be a reminder to her, a reminder that he loved her and he would be waiting for her to come back to him and once it was all over, they'd be together and build a life together. It was a reminder to never give up, to fight for a future with him. Of course, that was _if_ she agreed to marry him.

Taking a breath and steeling his nerves, he prepared himself to ask the question that would define his future. He wasn't nervous per se, after all, he had confessed his love for Hermione in front of the entire population of Hogwarts, so this was a walk in the park compared to that. But this was a big step.

He pulled back from her and she turned around to face him, and just as he was about to drop to the ground on one knee and pull out the ring he'd spent weeks searching for, he was prevented from doing so when Hermione suddenly surged forward, her arms circling his neck and pulling his head down to hers, their mouths pressing together in a consuming kiss.

Thoughts of his marriage proposal were pushed aside for the moment as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against him tightly and he grew lost in her as her tongue darted out to swipe at his bottom lip, seeking entrance. He granted her it, parting his lips and her tongue swept into his mouth to twine and dance with his, a moan falling from her when his hand moved lower to squeeze her arse.

The sound jolted him back to reality and reminded him of the very important question he wished to ask her. As much as he hated pulling away from her, he did and she looked far from pleased. He had a tendency to lose track of time when he was with her, like everything no longer mattered and it was just the two of them. She made him forget about those that surrounded them, about where they were or what they were supposed to be doing.

She reached for him once more but he stepped back, removing her arms from around his neck and holding her hands in his, his thumbs gently running over her knuckles.

"I want to talk to you about something," he said softly.

She shook her head. "It can wait, right now, I just want to be with you. I don't know how long I'll be gone or when we'll next see each other and we probably won't get this chance again, I suspect someone will come looking for us shortly."

She stepped closer to him and tilted her head up, waiting for him to lower his own to kiss her. As much as he wanted to be with her, too, he felt he needed to get it all off his chest.

"There's something I _really_ wish to speak to you about."

"We can talk after, I promise, but I _need_ you now. Please don't make me beg."

Fred knew there was nothing he wouldn't do for her, and he supposed he could propose after, it just meant he might have to do it in front of a crowd, but given his previous experience with confessing his feelings in front of hundreds of people, that didn't bother him.

She must've seen the acceptance on his face because she stepped into him and reached up on her tiptoes and the moment their mouths pressed together, it was as if he hadn't pulled back from her at all.

Their arms wrapped around each other and he lifted her off the ground, his robe falling from her shoulders and onto the grass. Her legs wrapped around him and he lowered them to the floor, getting down onto his knees and lying Hermione down on the robe covered grass, hovering over her, all without taking his mouth from hers.

Her hands wound into his hair, tugging gently and scratching at his scalp, pulling a groan from him. He'd deliberately let it grow, having learned that Hermione liked his hair shaggy and messy; she liked having something to grip onto. It wasn't as long as it had been during his sixth year when it had almost brushed his shoulders, but it was long enough to cover his ears and fall into his eyes and he'd spent the majority of the day avoiding his mother as she wanted to give him a haircut.

One of his hands moved to her thigh, trailing his fingers over her soft skin as he felt her hands come away from his hair and moving down to his chest. She tugged his shirt free of his trousers and with nimble fingers, quickly had it unbuttoned until it hung open, revealing his chest to her.

She tugged him down onto her with her legs and his weight covered her as he allowed his hands to wander, pushing the straps of her dress off her shoulders and pulling his mouth from hers, moving his lips across her cheek and down to her neck.

"Mark me," she breathed out.

"Hmm?" He hummed against her neck.

"I want you to mark me, when I look in the mirror and see it I'll be reminded of you, of how you're the only one to make me feel so vulnerable, yet invincible; of how you're the only one that's able to make me forget, to make me lose control."

He groaned against her skin when her hands found purchase at his back, her nails digging into his shoulders and her thighs tightening around his waist, reminding him of the fact she was wearing a dress and there were very few clothing items that separated them.

Taking her words to heart, because really, he hated to disappoint her, he busied his lips and teeth with nipping at her throat and neck, and sucking at her pulse point until he was sure he'd left a mark. And not leaving it to chance, he did it on the opposite side, too, whilst allowing his hands to wander down to her breasts, approving of the fact she wasn't wearing a bra beneath her dress. She moaned against his ear and her nails dug into him a little harder as he kneaded and massaged her breasts, rubbing over her nipples with his thumbs and them pebbling beneath the fabric.

His hips bucked against her when her hands ran down his chest, tracing the muscle he'd gained from years of playing Quidditch with soft touches and she grazed over his nipples on her way down south. She reached his trousers and was quick to unbutton and unzip them, her hand snaking between them and into his boxers, wrapping around his length.

He groaned against her skin as she worked her hand over him and after being together for nearly two years, she knew him so well that she knew exactly how to rile him up. His own hand moved south, slipping beneath her dress and moving towards her knickers.

"I want you now," she breathed against his ear.

"Don't you want me to..."

"No," she shook her head.

More often than not Fred made it a point to ensure she always orgasmed before they had sex, not only because he loved seeing her at the height of her pleasure, but because it made her sensitive and it was always a lot easier to draw a second orgasm from her afterwards. Well, that and he loved to focus on her more than he did himself. He didn't care if he never found relief again, so long as Hermione was taken care of.

"We probably don't have time, we've been gone a while and someone's bound to have noticed. This may be the last time we ever get to see each other again and I don't want it being interrupted."

"Don't say that," he scowled, pulling his head back from her neck so he could look down at her and he held himself up on his elbows. "We _will_ see each other again. I'm not letting you go. I want you to promise you'll come back to me."

"I can't make that promise," she said softly, pulling her hand out from his trousers and holding onto his hip whilst the other was cradling the back of his neck, her fingers fiddling with his hair.

"I want you to promise you'll come back to me, Hermione. I can't lose you, I won't."

She closed her eyes, fighting off the tears. "I promise I'll do everything possible to come back to you. I promise that I will never love another the way I love you. I promise that you are the most important person and thing in my life. I promise that should anything happen to me and I'm not able to come back to you, that I loved you until my last breath and if I should be taken to the afterlife, even then my love for you won't waver. Now please, Fred, don't make me wait. Show me how much you love me."

He had every intention of doing so, both with his body and the ring he had sitting in his pocket. Taking a breath, he nodded and lowered his mouth back down to hers, getting lost in her consuming kiss. Despite her words and her hands moving to his trousers and boxers and shifting them down until his erection sprung free, his hand worked its way beneath her dress and her knickers, his fingers slipping through her folds and checking to see if she was ready for him.

She was but before he moved further, he let two fingers enter her, knowing exactly how to work her up as she gasped against his mouth and her hand tightened in his hair as the other gripped his length a little tighter. If this was to be their last time together, he'd make sure she'd remember it and despite having a lack of time and the chance of someone stumbling upon them, he wanted to savour their time together.

After finding her little bundle of nerves with his thumb and putting pressure on it, Hermione's hips started moving against his hand and her breathing sped up and feeling her walls beginning to flutter, he knew she was close.

"Fred!" She whined, pulling her mouth from his and her head falling back against the ground.

His mouth twitched into a smile; he couldn't deny he loved hearing his name fall from her lips, especially when in intimate moments such as this one.

"Please!"

He groaned when her hand tightened around him and it was bordering on painful. Knowing she would accidentally injure him if he continued teasing her, he conceded, pulling his fingers from inside her and shifting above her.

He supported himself on one arm whilst the other he used to pull her underwear out of the way. Her hand was still buried in his hair but it came down to hook beneath his arm and around, gripping onto his shoulder as the other guided him towards her entrance. She tilted her hips higher, ready to accept him and with their eyes locked, he moved until he was buried inside her, their noises of pleasure mixing together and his head dropping to her shoulder as she buried hers in his neck.

It had been far too long since he'd been with Hermione in this way and he hadn't realised until just now. He hadn't realised how much he missed the way she tugged at his hair, or she gripped at his shoulder, her nails digging in. He hadn't realised how much he missed the scent of her invading his nose and clinging to his skin and clothes, how much he missed the way she wrapped her legs around him as if she didn't ever want to let go.

Feeling her walls fluttering around him as she deliberately flexed her pelvic muscles, he groaned and took a breath to calm himself lest it all be over before it had even started, but he took the hint, latching his mouth onto hers and pulling his hips back before moving forward.

It was clear to him that Hermione didn't approve of his intentions to draw it out as long as possible and she tugged at his hair, squeezed her thighs around his waist tighter and moved her hips against his. Knowing from experience how frustrated she became when he teased her, he sped up his movements and needing to breathe, he pulled his lips from hers and buried them against her neck, hearing and feeling her pants and breathy moans against his ear.

With his hands wandering her body, his mouth working at her neck and shoulders and his hips moving against hers, it wasn't long until he noticed the change in her breathing, or the way she gripped onto him tightly, or the way her head fell back against the ground and her mewls and whimpers grew louder. Knowing she was close to the edge, he buried his hand between them and worked its way under her dress until he found her nub, putting pressure on it and rubbing in well-timed circles.

She cried out as her orgasm slammed into her, sending her flying over the edge and she buried her face in his neck, holding onto him tightly. His movements grew erratic until he found his own relief several thrusts later, groaning against her skin and slowing to a stop. If she wasn't already holding him so tightly against her, he would've collapsed on top of her. He made to pull out of her and move to the side, but she held him tighter.

"Not yet," she said quietly, feeling her chest brush his with every breath she took and her nose tickled his skin as she nuzzled at his throat. "I love you."

"I love you, too," he breathed out, pressing a kiss to one of the marks he'd left on her, as per her instructions.

Despite his trousers being pushed down to his thighs, he could still feel the ring box pressing against him through the fabric of his pocket and it reminded him that he had to ask her, and very soon.

He pulled his head back to look down at her, his eyes trailing her beautiful features and committing them to memory because Merlin knew how long she'd be gone.

"So, this talk you wished to have, what is it?" She questioned, gently raking her hands through his hair and scratching at his scalp in a way that was calming and comforting.

He opened up mouth to respond when an explosion sounded off in the distance, startling them. They looked to each other with wide eyes before they pulled back from each other and sprang to their feet, Hermione righting her dress, underwear and shoulder straps and Fred doing the same with his trousers.

Hermione didn't bother with her shoes and Fred didn't bother with fastening his shirt or picking up his robes, rather they both looked to each other before darting off in the direction of the explosion, the closer they got the louder the screams and shouts became and the brighter the fires and beams of light. Seeing robed, masked figures duelling with members of The Order, they both knew they were under attack.

Reaching out for Hermione's hand, he gave it a squeeze before they both ran for the marquee, jumping into the battle. Hermione disappeared from his side and guests were running for freedom as he helped to duel the Death Eaters whilst throwing Shielding Charms to protect those that were escaping.

The table cloth beside him caught fire and he jumped out of the way, looking up for the one responsible. His eyes caught Hermione, seeing her stood in the middle of the marquee with Harry and Ron on either side of her.

He knew this was it. She was leaving.

He saw her mouth the words, 'I love you,' before she was gone with a 'crack', just as the Killing Curse passed where she'd once stood.

He stood there in shock, unable to process that she was actually gone. And he hadn't had the chance to propose, the ring box feeling heavy in his pocket.

"FRED! MOVE!"

George came up beside him and grabbed him by the arm before he felt the familiar tugging in his stomach and he found himself in the living room of his flat.

"Fred?" George said, his hand resting on his shoulder.

"She's gone, just like that," Fred muttered.

"I know," George said softly.

He'd known about The Golden Trio's plan to leave as Fred had told him, needing someone to talk to about Hermione leaving on a dangerous mission and knowing George was the only person he trusted not to tell anyone or to try and get involved by stopping them.

"She'll be back, you'll see."

"I didn't even have the chance to ask her," Fred said, digging his hand into his pocket and pulling out the ring box, it sitting in his palm.

"Hell, I thought you were joking, I didn't know you'd actually bought a ring," George spoke, sounding surprised and Fred looked up at him, seeing him staring down at the ring box with wide eyes.

Fred had told him about him wanting to marry Hermione months ago, but he supposed he'd forgotten to tell him he'd gotten a ring to actually propose, especially since they'd been so busy lately.

George shook his head. "Don't worry, that witch of yours is brilliant, there's not a chance she's going to let someone keep her from you and when she's back, you can ask her then, and I want all the details. But, it seems you've been busy," he said, deliberately looking him up and down, bringing notice to his messy hair, his un-tucked and still unfastened shirt and his unbuttoned trousers. "I wondered where you'd disappeared to, and I'm glad I didn't go searching," he grimaced. "I love you and I love the bones of that little witch, but there are some things I don't need to see." George gave his shoulder a squeeze. "Right, we need to reinforce the wards, shut off access to the floo network and grab our things, mum's already waiting for us at Aunt Muriel's, and if I were you, I'd make myself presentable. You know how she feels about sex before marriage and if she finds out what you and Hermione had been up to whilst you snuck away, you won't hear the end of it."

George left to go down to the shop floor and Fred sighed before slipping the ring box back into his pocket, vowing to keep it with him until Hermione returned to him.

~000~000~000~

"Fred, Fred, wake up," Hermione's voice flittered to his ears and drawing him away from his peaceful slumber.

"Hmm?" He muttered, not wanting to speak lest it woke him, at the moment he was halfway in-between sleeping and waking which meant it was easy to tip either way.

He felt the mattress shift beside him and he rolled onto his side, his arms wrapping around Hermione and pulling her body against his, tucking her head beneath his chin and letting out a sigh.

"Are you awake?"

"Hmm," he hummed in reply.

"Wake up,"

"No," he mumbled, holding her tighter when he felt her wriggling against him.

"Please, I need you," she whispered.

"You need sleep, we both do. You've got a meeting in the morning and I'm meeting George at the shop early to prepare for the launch of our new prank jewellery range."

"I _need_ you," she insisted.

Her hand came up to grip at his, pulling it from around her and he took a deep breath when he felt her guiding it beneath his t-shirt that she wore to bed and bringing it towards her knickers. His eyes screwed shut tightly when she hooked her leg over his hip and pushed his hand beneath her knickers, his fingers skimming her centre. His breath hitched and his eyes flew open, now being wide awake.

Hell, she really did need him, he thought, feeling her wetness coating his fingers. It had him curious as to what she'd been dreaming of that had her waking up in such a state. He'd been too tired to at first recognise the slight breathlessness to her tone, but hearing it now, he knew she was worked up and in need of release and though he knew she could take care of it herself, she much preferred that he did it for her.

Her hands flew to his shoulders, her nails digging into his bare skin sharply and she gasped, her eyes closing and her head falling back when he ran his fingers over her before slipping two fingers into her.

She was further along than he'd realised as she'd immediately started rocking her hips in time to the movement of his hand, and he felt her walls fluttering around him, signalling that she was close.

Fred kept his gaze on her face, watching the way her pale skin flushed in the light of the moon that peaked through the gap in the curtains, watching the way mewls and moans escaped her mouth despite her teeth being sunk into her bottom lip. Watching the way her breathing picked up and her head tilted back, her body arching against him.

Fred knew he would never tire of looking at her. After being together for four years and married for two, he knew he would never think about another witch, not when he had Hermione waiting for him to come home after a late night at the shop, or when she'd come home early to have lunch with him.

"It's not enough," Hermione muttered.

Shaking her head, she grabbed his hand and pulled it out from in-between them and she pushed him on to his back. Bringing her legs up, she quickly shimmied out of her knickers before dropping them to the ground and getting up onto her knees, moving to straddle Fred. He groaned and his eyes closed when she freed his length from the constraints of his underwear and she pumped her hand over him, before settling herself above him, positioning him at her entrance and sinking down onto him.

She let out a little mewl and her head tipped back, her sleep-mussed curls cascading down her back and his hands came up to grip at her hips, his teeth biting into his lip as he fought for control when he felt her walls pulsing around him.

Taking a breath, her eyes locked with his and she brought her hands down to his chest for balance, before rocking her hips against him, a rhythm quickly between them. Being together as long as they had, they both knew exactly how to rile the other up and they both knew the other's weak spots, so Hermione bent down and her mouth latched onto Fred's pulse point, nipping, licking and sucking until she left a little red mark behind.

Fred gripped her hips tighter, his fingers splaying over her arse and he planted his feet on the bed, using it as leverage to thrust up into her as she came down onto him. He knew she was very near the edge, feeling her nails digging into his chest and hearing her mewls and moans growing louder.

He titled his head until he was able to reach her earlobe and he tugged on it with his teeth, sucking it into his mouth and releasing it, blowing cold air over it. That was it. Her orgasm crashed into her until she let out a breathless gasp and she saw stars and he followed after her, slowing her movements to a stop with his grip on her hips.

Her forehead pressed against his shoulder and his hands slipped under her t-shirt to smooth over the soft skin of her back as they both came down from their high and regained their breathing.

"You can wake me up like that anytime you wish to, night or day," he muttered.

A light laugh fell from her lips and she lifted her head to latch her mouth onto his, kissing him until he was breathless.

"Good," she said, pulling her mouth back from him. "Because I suspect it will be happening again in the foreseeable future."

"Why?" He asked with a raised eyebrow. When her face softened he wasn't sure if he should be worried or not.

"You know how we talked about having kids?"

Of course, he did, he'd brought it up the second they'd gotten married, the first time that is. They'd had two weddings, well, technically they had. When Fred had been admitted to St. Mungo's following his injuries at the final battle, he'd been kept in for a little over two weeks and Hermione never once left his side.

The hospital staff had tried to remove her, of course, but she'd soon frightened them off, though it did help that she was an integral part of winning the war and The Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, had given permission for her to stay with him. As such, he'd been given a private room fit with a bathroom and a couch, which Hermione had slept on every night until his release.

He'd been feeling much better after a week but the healers had wanted to monitor him, and he couldn't wait any longer as he wanted to marry Hermione as soon as possible. So, when Kingsley had visited and with him being The Minister, he had the authority and means to carry out a wedding ceremony. Fred had been in his pyjamas, Hermione her t-shirt and jeans and their witnesses had been George and Harry. They were married within ten minutes.

When the others had found out they'd been surprised but his mother had been the worst, shouting and shrieking until Hermione lost her temper and flung a Silencing Charm at her, preventing her from voicing her disapproval. She'd taken those ten blissful minutes of silence to explain that despite them technically being husband and wife, they had every intention of having a wedding ceremony and reception in which all their friends and family would be invited to, after Fred was healed and they'd found her parents and restored their memories.

That night Fred had convinced her that he was well enough to consummate their marriage and though she had put up a fight at first, she gave in when she saw he was able to walk about the room without issue. After being away from each other for nine months, their first time being together again was on their wedding night and had taken place in a hospital bed with a heavily warded door.

They'd laid cuddled together, discussing their plans for building a life together, which is when they spoke about having children. Hermione admitted that she did want children, more than one but less than three. He agreed on that sounding like the perfect amount and despite loving his family, it was just as hard growing up with a big family as it may have been growing up an only child. While one was spoilt and lonely, the other was crowded or sometimes forgotten. To him, three had sounded perfect.

But despite wanting kids, she'd wanted to wait a few years which he understood. She wanted to have a career and make her way up through the ranks before having children, and he saw no problem in waiting. They were both still young and it just meant they had more time together before they had to share each other with another human being. They'd agreed to wait until their fifth wedding anniversary before they discussed if they were ready or not for children to be brought into their family. Though if Fred were honest, it didn't matter to him when they had children. He'd have done so years ago, or even in ten years time.

"Fred?"

"I remember," he said, shaking his head slightly and his hands coming to rest on her arse beneath her t-shirt. "You wanted to wait five years before we thought about it again."

She bit her lip. "What if I wanted children sooner?"

He smiled up at her. "Then we'll have them sooner."

"A lot sooner than you think," she said.

"Meaning?"

"Well, a few months ago some of my colleagues were on maternity leave and they came in for a visit. When I saw how happy they were and I held the babies, I just couldn't stop picturing what our children would look like and even after they left, I couldn't get the thought out of my head. I thought about coming off the potion but I wanted to speak to you first."

"And?" He asked, his breath hitching slightly at what she was insinuating.

She nibbled at her lip again. "With you always leaving your potions about everywhere, I got my potion mixed up with your Mood Detector Draught, they're both the same colour and have a similar smell. I took the wrong one by accident."

His eyes widened and they darted down to her covered stomach automatically.

"Are you saying that..." He trailed off, unable to finish his sentence.

She removed a hand from his chest and brought it up to grab at his wrist, pulling it away from her before slipping it under her t-shirt and pressing it to her stomach. His eyes were glued to it. She reached for her wand and brought it to her stomach before muttering an incantation beneath her breath.

His breath caught when he saw the tell-tale sign of the white glow, indicating pregnancy.

"I'm seven weeks pregnant... And with twins," she said, looking down at him with a nervous smile.

He watched the way the white glow left the tip of her wand and hovered in front of her stomach before it suddenly split in two.

He had the breath knocked out of him.

"Please say something," she whispered.

"You're pregnant?"

"Yes,"

"With twins?"

"Yes," she answered. "It's why I've been feeling a little nauseous lately, and a lot more randy than usual, too."

She squealed in surprise when he sat up and pulled her against him, wrapping his arm around her tightly and with his hand still pressed against her stomach.

"I love you so much," he breathed. "And I didn't think you could be any more beautiful, that is until I learned you're carrying our babies."

"I love you, too, and I'm glad you're happy, I was worried you'd be disappointed."

"Never, I've always wanted children with you, the timing was never an issue for me but I knew you wanted to wait, so I was happy to. I can't believe it. I'm going to be a dad."

She laughed. "A wonderful one, too. And aside from Bill, Molly's getting her first grandchildren from us."

He laughed. "Merlin, I have to tell George, right now."

"Fred, it's three in the morning, he'll be sleeping," she said, laughing when he shifted her off his lap and made to climb out of bed.

"Hermione, you're pregnant! With twins!" He exclaimed. "You beautiful, little witch," he said, bending down to place a kiss to her mouth before heading for the door.

"Fred! You're all but naked!" She laughed loudly, motioning to his half-naked self, given that he was only wearing a pair of boxers and they were halfway down his arse and he'd yet to tuck himself back into them.

"Oh, right," he said, pulling his boxers back up and crossing over to the wardrobe, grabbing a t-shirt and throwing it on.

He picked up his wand from the bedside table, placed another kiss to Hermione's mouth and darted out of the room, flooing to the flat he used to share with George before moving out not long after his second wedding ceremony with Hermione, and to a lovely little house in rural London that was perfect for raising a family.

"George! George!" Fred called, barely stopping himself from darting to George's bedroom, but given that he knew George was dating Angelina, he didn't want to risk walking in on them if she was there.

"Fred, do you have any idea what time it is?" George grouched, stepping out of his room and into the living room, running a hand through his messy hair and pulling his pyjama pants up his hips.

"Three o'clock, and it's a great time of the morning," Fred grinned.

George blinked the sleep away from his eyes and narrowed his eyes at him. "Something's happened? What is it?"

"I've some news,"

"And it couldn't wait for another five hours?" He questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"No,"

"Spit it out then," George rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Hermione's pregnant."

"What?" George said dumbly.

Fred was beaming a smile so wide it actually hurt his face, but he couldn't stop it. "She woke me up, randy little devil she is, anyway, after ravishing her silly..." George grimaced. "She dropped the bombshell that she wanted kids sooner than we agreed, but not only that, she got our Mood Detector Draught mixed up with her Contraception Potion. Long story short, she's seven weeks pregnant with twins."

"She's pregnant?" He said, it finally sinking in as he stood taller and his eyes widened.

"With twins!" Fred beamed.

"With twins?"

"With twins!" He laughed.

"With twins!" George echoed, laughing loudly and bounding over to him, pulling him into a tight hug.

"What's all this noise? Do you have any idea what time it is? I have to be at training tomorrow," a half-dressed Angelina grouched, stepping out of George's room and into the living room, glaring at them both.

"Hush up, Angie," George waved her off. "We're celebrating."

"Hermione's pregnant, just found out," Fred grinned at her. She blinked slowly.

"With twins! I'm going to be an Uncle!" George shouted, pulling Fred back into a tight hug and laughing.

The floo roared to life and Hermione stepped out, Fred beaming at the sight of her, but also at the fact she'd put some shorts on beneath his t-shirt that she wore.

"There she is, you beautiful, little twin carrying witch!" George said, pulling back from Fred and scooping Hermione up into his arms, spinning her in circles and she laughed loudly.

Fred's heart soared and his chest pooled with his love for Hermione, hearing her bright laughter and seeing her wide smile, seeing her being happy.

"I always knew you were my favourite," George said, putting her back on her feet before looking to him. "Twins!" He exclaimed, pulling him back into a hug and tugging Hermione with him, trapping her between them. "We need to celebrate," George decided, pulling back and Fred tugged Hermione into his side.

"It's three in the morning," Hermione said.

"And I'm off to ravish my beautiful wife again," Fred said, scooping Hermione up and putting her over his shoulder, marching to the fireplace as she laughed and George was a cross between amused and disappointed.

"We're going to dinner tomorrow, we'll shut up early. I don't care if we lose customers, this needs to be celebrated," George called after them and as Fred stepped into the floo, he heard George say, "Angie, I'm going to be an Uncle!" Before an 'oomph' left the tired witch as George hugged her tightly.

Stepping into the living room of his and Hermione's house, he climbed the stairs and walked to their bedroom, dropping Hermione down onto the mattress and she laughed at him.

As he pounced on her, Fred could honestly say he'd never been happier.


End file.
